Ward’s: A family-owned supermarket that spotlights local vendors
Some employees of Ward's Supermarket think the local grocery store is haunted.
"I had an experience in the middle of the night up here," said Bryan Ward, 40, meat department manager.
One night, Bryan Ward and another employee were woodworking when they both turned around, startled by what sounded like someone screaming, even though they were the only two in the building.
Another employee swore he felt a finger push him on the face three times when he was alone in the supermarket, said Danielle Ward, 44, co-owner of Ward's.
For whatever reason, it is always the meat department, she said.
The ghost stories speak to the unique quality of the historic store, its employees and customers. Ward's Supermarket is the last independent family-owned and operated grocery store in Gainesville and has been serving the community for four generations.
Danielle and Bryan Ward's great-grandfather, J.B. Ward, founded the store in 1951 as an open-air produce stand.
"It had chicken wire and sawdust floors," Danielle Ward said.
In 1979, the Ward family built a new store behind its original produce stand, demolishing the stand on the same day they moved into the new space. Twelve years later, in 1991, Ward's relocated again after outgrowing the store on Northwest Sixth Street, which now functions as its office.
Ward's is housed in had previously been home to Norman's Country Market. Bryan Ward said the family purchased the property from the bank after the owners left the country because of legal issues.
For both moves, the Ward family worked through the night, transporting as many displays and equipment as possible to ensure they were ready to open for business the following day. Danielle Ward, who was 11 years old, spent the night on the floor of their new building while her parents moved.
"It wasn't an option to close down for a day or two and move locations," Danielle Ward said. "So, they had to do what they had to do and keep business going to be able to pay the bills."
Angie Mohr, 62, has been a manager at Ward's for 26 years. She said her favorite memory from working at Ward's was when employees dress up for Halloween or host Christmas parties out back and eat food catered by Hill's BBQ & Catering.
Mohr described working at Ward's as: "If all the people in the world got along the way, we all got along here. I think the world would be a good place because it doesn't matter who you are or what you are. It doesn't matter at all."
Ward's caters to all types of people and is considered the melting pot of Gainesville, Danielle Ward said. In a day, you can see anywhere between 1,400 and 2,500 people passing through the store.
Kathy Martin, a 65-year-old Gainesville resident, believes Ward's stands apart because of its wide selection of locally sourced products and welcoming atmosphere.
"Being a locally owned business and supporting other local people like local farmers and to get meat from local people, it just helps to keep the local businesses going," she said.
About 500 local vendors support Ward's, Danielle Ward said. These vendors provide a wide range of products, including barbecue sauces, hot sauces, beers, wine, dairy, meat, produce and soap. Ward's sources a lot of their produce from Sun City and USA Vegetables as well as local farmers.
Many of Ward's products vary throughout the year depending on the season. Coming into season now are peas, green peanuts, winter squash, zucchini, apples, oranges, pumpkins and regular squash, Danielle Ward said.
Ward's discovers many of its vendors through word-of-mouth and visiting farmer's markets. It also obtains products from farmers who have an abundance of crops and are looking for someone to take them.
Russ Welker, who has been with Ward's for 32 years, previously owned a couple of grocery stores in the local area before choosing to come work at Ward's.
He said one business he has seen grow with the supermarket has been the coffee roasters.
"We're an incubator for local small family businesses, and many businesses start here and then grow bigger later on," Welker said. "But we give an audience to local producers, and that's unique."
The biggest challenge Ward's has faced in the past four years has been the changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, Danielle Ward said. Due to its small square footage, Ward's was only allowed to take 14 people into its supermarket at one time during the pandemic. But community members stood by Ward's and lined up outside, waiting for their turn to shop.
Danielle Ward said she's grateful for the customer loyalty showed during the pandemic.
"You know, we could have been out of business just by the few people that we are allowed to let in. Fourteen people at one time for this building is not a lot of people in the store shopping."
In response to the COVID restrictions, Ward's tried to implement online shopping. But Danielle Ward said it was extremely slow and did not work.
"I think a lot of our customers, they like the fact that we're more of a farm-to-table grocery store, and they can come pick out the freshest products as possible," she said.
Keeping up with competing grocery stores is a constant job, Danielle Ward said. To stay competitive with other stores in the area, like Aldi and Winn-Dixie, Ward's strives to keep up with customers' demand while keeping prices down.
"Instead of just shopping at one particular warehouse, you have to shop three or four different ones," said Danielle Ward. "The avocados may be cheaper at Sun City this week, but next week, you're going to have to buy them from the USA vegetables."
Another challenge Ward's faces is keeping prices down while still making a profit. Since Ward's buys many of its products locally, it works directly with farmers, cutting out the middleman. Danielle Ward said this helps keep prices down while still allowing farmers to earn a fair wage for their products.
Ward's determines its pricing by working off a certain gross profit, which is the revenue earned before taking into account fixed costs and staying within that margin. The gross profit of the shelf-stable products may be a little less than that of the produce and meat departments because meat and vegetables are perishable, Danielle Ward said.
Ward's keeps wines and beers at a reasonable price by working closely with vendors and forming a personal relationship with them. If deals pop up, Ward's can jump on them and pass them on to their customers.
Throughout its many years of business, Ward's has kept many of its business practices the same. But the biggest change Ward's has seen is the growth of the store and expansion of products.
"We've had a good structure that we've started with, and we try to continue with that structure and that's quality and freshness at a very reasonable price," Danielle Ward said.
Before, Ward's did not have a natural foods section, said Mohr, the store manager. It just had meat, grocery and produce. Drawing on Welker's knowledge of the grocery store industry, Ward's has added a natural foods section and diversified its inventory, especially in the wine and beer department.
Carle Whitaker, 47, lives right down the road from Ward's and works at the Wawa on Northwest 13th Street. She has been shopping at Ward's with her mother since she was little. Her mother passed away a month ago, and Whitaker is continuing the tradition of shopping at Ward's.
Whitaker said Ward's impacts the community by providing great organic food. She particularly loves how fresh all the food is, especially the smoked meat.
"I love the people and the food, so I keep coming back," Whitaker said.
Donna Waller, 79, a retired Santa Fe professor and long-time vegetarian, said she likes shopping at Ward's for its wide selection of vegan and vegetarian options. She also likes that everyone knows her. If she cannot find something in the store, Waller said, all she has to do is ask.
Waller has been shopping at Ward's for 44 years and first met Danielle Ward when she was 18 months old when she was being pushed around the store in a stroller.
Danielle Ward said her goal for Ward's is to pass the supermarket down to the next generation of Ward children. She is hopeful that her youngest daughter, who has shown some interest in the business side of Ward's, will one day take over the family business.
"As far as the grocery store industry, it's pretty unheard of to get to the fourth generation. So, ... we can be here for many, many more years," said Danielle Ward.
