Grand Terrace City Council, city clubs and residents of the community stood together early February 20, 2020, all gathered to welcome Eric and Priscilla Santillan, independent owners of the Grocery Outlet of Grand Terrace. Just a few short weeks after the celebratory ribbon cutting, the COVID-19 pandemic would hit the nation and cause the state to come to a halt. Being the owners of a grocery store, Eric and Pricilla were able to keep their doors open and embark on the journey of providing essential items and giving back to their community during one of the most unprecedented times in history.
“I think this year we’ve had some ups and downs but I think the outcome has been positive and we just hope to continue to strive in the community and be able to have even better results next year,” owner Priscilla Santillan said.
Come join the Grocery Outlet of Grand Terrace in celebrating their one-year anniversary on Saturday February 20th for your chance to win 1 of 4 $50 gift cards. Also, the first 100 customers will receive a free reusable grocery bag. Simply visit the Grand Terrace Grocery Outlet on February 20th to enter for the chance to win.
Eric and Priscilla said that the feedback they have received from the community has been nothing but positive and that their favorite part of their journey has been building a relationship and connection with their community whether it was in person at the store or online through social media.
“Thank you for your loyalty and support, hopefully we can continue to partner with the community for years to come,” the owners said.
When the pandemic hit, panic set in for many citizens and many ventured out into stores to stock up on essential items like water, bread, meat, disinfecting spray, hand sanitizer and even toilet paper.
Grand Terrace Grocery Outlet, a provider of all those items, found their shelves quickly clearing. The owners mention, that thankfully since they just barely opened when the pandemic first hit, they were well stocked and able to provide essential items to the community and notify them on social media when certain items were re-stocked.
Throughout their year of operation, Eric and Priscilla have been able to adapt to the new ways of living, ensure the safety of their customers and staff and also achieve their goal of building a relationship with the community through giving back.
From the day of their grand opening, Eric and Priscilla remember it as an exciting day with, “a lot of emotions going through, we were just glad to finally open,” Priscilla said.
“We were just looking forward to be able to partner with the community and to have a great year and many more to come.”
Since their opening, Grand Terrace Grocery Outlet made thier motto "Touching Lives for the Better," a prominent goal to achieve during their first year of business and giving back to the community is something that they hope to continue to attain for many years to come.
Throughout the year, the owners of Grand Terrace Grocery Outlet participated in multiple food drives, giveaways and organized several fun seasonal donations.
In June and July, Grand Terrace Grocery Outlet participated in the “Independence from Hunger” food drive that helps fight hunger in the community and all donations stayed local.
In August, they donated school supplies to The Heart Matters Foster Agency for local students. The next month, the owners hand-delivered snack bags to the Music & Movies in the Park at Sunset at Blue Mountain in Grand Terrace.
In October, the Grand Terrace Grocery Outlet donated various food items to the Groceries of Love Food Pantry during a monthly food giveaway. The owners also hand-delivered and donated 24 pumpkins to the residents of the Grand Terrace Vista Blue Mountain Assisted Living and Memory Care Center for their annual decorating event. The owners of Grand Terrace Grocery Outlet also held their own pumpkin decorating contest for community members to participate in and gave away Big Mac pumpkins to the winners.
In November they partnered with Community in Unity and participated in the Thanksgiving Food Drive for the Groceries of Love Food Pantry. Then again in December, the Grand Terrace Grocery Outlet partnered with Community in Unity, along with other community organizations, and participated in a toy drive in which they became a drop-off location for residents to donate unwrapped toys.
“We are happy to be part of the Grand Terrace community and be able to provide big savings on name-brand, high quality groceries,” the owners said.
“We appreciate the support that we have received from the community. We give back whenever we can, and we try every day to exceed customers’ expectations.”
City News Group would like to congratulate Eric and Priscilla on their one-year anniversary and thank them for their contribution to our community.
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