by Brenda Lange

Around the time Governor Wolf announced the imminent shutdown of all Montgomery County’s non-essential businesses, people started panic buying at local grocery stores. Dana Ward, communications and public affairs for Acme Markets, made this observation about two weeks later. Acme operates 164 stores in six states, including at 7700 Crittenden St. in Chestnut Hill.

Stores were packed, even at hours during which they are normally slow. “It was about March 12, and it was noticeable. Like a snowstorm on steroids,” said Ward last week. “Nothing like this has ever happened before. When we deal with a snowstorm, one area gets hit and another does not. Resources aren’t depleted from every which way. Trying to source products and get them to stores in a timely fashion is not as easy as it is normally … this created supply chain issues.”

Since the pandemic is unprecedented, no one knew (or knows) what to expect. Shoppers bought whatever they could and depleted store shelves — soap, sanitizers, cleaning supplies, toilet paper. “Who would have thought 3-4 weeks ago that you needed to put a limit on that?”

Today, Acme's supermarkets in Chestnut Hill, Mt. Airy, Flourtown and two in Roxborough all have limits on how many items consumers may buy of these high-demand items, including the above, also ground beef and chicken, which also have been disappearing at a rapid rate. The store does not limit purchases to one, but limits are enforced when necessary.

Ward reassures customers that “Everything is available; it just can’t be turned around quickly enough. We’re restocking regularly, as fast as the supply chain allows.”

Weavers Way, with shops in Chestnut Hill, Mt. Airy and Ambler, is a co-operative, owned by those who pay annual membership dues. It also has reassured its clientele that all products will continue to be restocked as quickly as possible.

General Manager Jon Roesser sends regular emails to members updating pertinent information such as what items might be limited and changes in home delivery. The current membership roster for all three stores represents about 22,000 people, or 9,600 member households. Those members have always gotten home delivery service as part of their memberships, and they will continue to do so through a scaled-up service because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“We were doing about 12 deliveries per week before, and now we’re at about 115 per day, and hope to manage up to 140 per day by early April,” said Roesser. “Demand is high.”

To keep up with that demand, the stores have hired some temporary staff and also have redeployed staff from slower areas of the store. For example, Chestnut Hill has shut down its prepared meal stations, and kitchen personnel are stepping in to help with deliveries.

Acme also is hiring (visit https://www.albertsonscompanies.com/careers/acme-careers.html) for all positions and shifts. Both chains have contingency, or crisis management plans, in place for natural events, such as a hurricane or major snowstorm that may knock out power for a period of time. “But we have no experience managing something like this, something that is open-ended,” said Roesser.

“Two weeks ago, I would have said I was surprised by how cavalier people were being, not taking the threat seriously, coming in to shop every day,” he added. “Today, I’m pleased to see that they have gotten the message. I see a dramatic change in customer behavior in a short period of time.”

According to Ward, Acme Markets follows CDC guidelines that include cleaning cash registers and other areas every hour. They have shortened shopping hours to 9 a.m.-10 p.m. (open from 7-9 a.m. for their more vulnerable shoppers), allowing for expanded time to clean and sanitize. “Our No. 1 priority is to keep our shoppers safe and the stores open,” said Ward.

“Shoppers will see plexiglass barriers protecting both cashiers and shoppers at every register. To help people keep their distance, we have markings on the floor by checkouts, and we have a one-way flow of traffic in every aisle,” she said. All Acme stores are managed the same way, and its parent company, Albertson’s, operates a crisis center to help guide managers. “We just want people to know that we are open for business and ready to serve the community.”

The biggest change in customer behavior, according to Josh Magnitzky, Chestnut Hill’s Weavers Way produce manager, has been the way many are stockpiling. After a couple weeks, as supply diminished but demand went up, shoppers seemed afraid of being unable to get anything like what they wanted anytime soon.

“If we were out of fresh peppers, they would buy exotic packaged peppers, for example,” said Magnitzky. “Now I think they have stockpiled so much, they’re at capacity and coming in for fresh foods only when they really need to.”

Roesser agrees that the big shopping spike seems to have ended. “People are going out less frequently. Patterns have shifted from a stockpiling phase to the shelter-in-place phase. People choose to live in Chestnut Hill in part because they want the experience of living in a village, and part of that is shopping once a day for very fresh food. Every day. We’ve asked people not to do that for the time being, and they are listening.”

Weavers Way has expanded home delivery and curbside pick-up options. These options are limited to members and to one order per week per household. Orders must be made online at

www.weaversway.coop/delivery. Acme offers “vulnerable hours” from 7-9 a.m. Monday through Friday for shoppers who are disabled, senior citizens, those with autoimmune diseases and pregnant women. Visit shop.acmemarkets.com