- Wegmans, a regional grocer with a cult-like following in New England and the mid-Atlantic, just opened its 101st store in Brooklyn, New York.
- More than 25,000 people came to the store on opening day, many of them waiting for hours in the rain to nab a spot at the front of the line.
- "Some people go to the Super Bowl, some people go to Tour de France," said Wegmans lover Susan Myers, who was at the front of the line at the grand opening on Sunday. "I come to the Wegmans opening."
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Other than its cult following, Wegmans should be an average regional grocer.
With just over 100 stores in the New England and mid-Atlantic regions, the grocery chain is relatively small. But people can't get enough of this grocer that has the best reputation in America, according to a March ranking of America's 100 most visible brands by Axios and the Harris Poll. Wegmans beat out companies like Amazon and Costco in that ranking.
According to a representative for the grocer, more than 25,000 people showed up to the grand opening of Wegmans' 101st store in Brooklyn, New York, on Sunday, and the location broke opening-day sales records for the chain. Many people stood in the rain for hours in a line that stretched around the block.
"The Brooklyn store opening was an incredibly exciting day for our family company," a Wegmans representative said. "Despite heavy rainfall, hundreds of people lined up around the block before dawn yesterday."
Shopper Susan Myers came at midnight to be the first person in line for the opening.
"Wegmans is a destination," she said. "It's the place that we love."
The regional grocer's store openings have drawn large crowds in the past. Wegmans recently opened its 100th store in Raleigh, North Carolina, and broke records when more than 3,000 people waited in line on its opening day, the Raleigh News and Observer reported.
From the woman who waited seven hours in line to get the first receipt to the shoppers who made their own T shirts for the occasion, here are the fanatics who came to the Brooklyn Wegmans opening on Sunday.