Kroger Marketplace opened in Suffolk on Dec. 3

The Kroger Co. is opening its third marketplace store in the Hampton Roads region on Wednesday, Dec. 3, in the Harbor View area of Suffolk.

According to the company, the 123,000-square-foot store at 1017 University Blvd. in the Hampton Roads Crossing Shopping Center will employ nearly 350 full- and part-time workers.

In addition to grocery selections, the store also offers 30,000 square feet of non-grocery items, ranging from apparel to home décor.

There’s also a cheese shop with more than 175 varieties of cheese, a natural foods department, drive-thru pharmacy, Starbucks kiosk and a Kroger Fuel Center where customers can redeem earned fuel points on goods purchased.

Like the other super stores in the region, this one has a section devoted to Fred Meyer Jewelers, a subsidiary of Ohio-based Kroger and the third-largest fine jeweler in the nation.  

“We could not be more excited to open up a third store in the Hampton Roads area,” Ricky Green, store manager at the Suffolk Kroger Marketplace, said in a statement.  Green, a Virginia Beach native and 39-year-veteran of the grocery business, opened the first Hampton Roads location at the Holland Road Kroger Marketplace in Virginia Beach in July 2013. A second super store opened in Portsmouth in October.

As part of the grand opening festivities, Green will present four area nonprofit and community organizations with a donations. “From new opportunities to additional shopping options, the Kroger Marketplace will be a welcomed addition to our community,” said Suffolk Mayor Linda T. Johnson.

The Kroger Mid-Atlantic division operates 121 stores in the region, which includes North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and parts of Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio. The Kroger Co., headquartered in Cincinnati, focuses charitable efforts on supporting hunger relief, health and wellness initiatives and local organizations in the communities it serves.