Village of Minto says goodbye to local grocery store

The village of Minto, N.B., is saying goodbye to local supermarket Save Easy. 

The Loblaws-owned store is closing its doors and laying off workers.

“It's going to be a big loss for the community. It just seems like one thing after another, you know?” said Tracy Ryan, a village resident.

“Minto really didn't need that right now,” said another Minto resident Caryn Storey. 

Storey said with closures in the industrial park, and the coal mining industry, the Save Easy closure will definitely be felt.

“That's a lot of people out of work. For a small community, that's a big hit.”

The Minto Save Easy is closing at the end of June.  

"I would like to assure you that decisions of this nature are never made in haste," said Mark Boudreau, the director of corporate affairs at Loblaws in a statement. "But rather only after a careful assessment of a community’s needs versus store operations, as well as the effects such a change will have on the business and on our valued customers."

There is another grocery store minutes away by car. But for a village of 2,500, it isn't mainly about convenience. It's about jobs.

Minto Mayor Eric Barnett was a third-generation coal miner. 

He saw the last of those jobs leave in 2009, and it's hard to see more follow.

“It has an affect not only on the grocery part, but also there's a post office in there, and a Sears is in there,” he said. “I believe it's around 22, 23 jobs we're losing. So it's going to have a big effect on our village again.”
 
The employees were not allowed to speak with the CBC. Friends say some have over 20 years with the store.

Canada Post says its retail outlet will close along with the store, unless another location is found, but that there is a post office in Minto.