Shoppers get a look at Portsmouth’s new Kroger Marketplace

Portsmouth shoppers got a look at the region’s newest Kroger Marketplace store Wednesday with the opening of a 124,000-square-foot store at 1301 Frederick Blvd., the former home of I.C. Norcom High School.

Like Kroger’s other large stores, the Portsmouth Midtown Kroger Marketplace stocks more than groceries. Thestore offers 30,000 square feet of non-grocery space where customers can shop in departments ranging from apparel, home décor and baby and infant gear.

The store also offers a natural foods department, a Fred Meyer Jewelers, a pharmacy with drive-through service, a Starbucks kiosk with seating area and free Wi-Fi and a Kroger Fuel Center.

Unique to the Kroger stores in the Hampton Roads area, Portsmouth Midtown Marketplace amenities include an expanded gourmet wine and cheese pairing station and a more efficient layout to help customers navigate the store. According to Kroger, the added features were largely based upon customer feedback and shopping behaviors.

The store’s community room will be named the I.C. Norcom Room in honor of the school that formerly stood on the grounds. The high school was renamed to honor its first supervising principal, Israel Charles Norcom, a pioneer educator in the region.

“Our goal for this store is to make a positive impact on the community and bring an enjoyable shopping experience to our customers,” store Manager Terry Lucas said in a statement.

The Portsmouth Kroger Marketplace, which will employ nearly 350 full- and part-time workers, is the second Marketplace store in Hampton Roads. The next Marketplace store is planned to open in December in Suffolk.

Kroger Mid-Atlantic also operates two Marketplace stores in the Richmond market, with plans to open more in the next several years.