Some customers came to get warm, some to stock up on the essentials and others were curious about what the new Bedford Hannaford had to offer.

The recent ice storm may have caused a major blackout, but store manager Mike Bolduc didn’t let that get in the way of Hannaford’s grand opening on Saturday, Dec. 13.

On Friday evening, Dec. 12 – the night before the Saturday, Dec. 13, grand opening – Bolduc said a flatbed generator was brought in to supplement the emergency generator, which produced just enough power to run the registers and lights.

Bolduc said the brand-new store had to throw away all of its perishable and refrigerated items, filling up two Dumpsters.

Workers from Maine, Massachusetts and surrounding stores spent the night restocking shelves and refrigerators, cutting meat and readying the new Bedford Hannaford store for its first day of business.

“I got here at about 5 a.m. and they were still doing the finishing touches,” Bolduc said. “They were determined. We were going to make this store open on its time and date.” By 6:30 a.m., Bolduc said a line had formed outside of his store.

“It was so cold they were just hoping to come inside and warm up a little bit,” he said. By 7 a.m., as scheduled, the store opened its doors to customers for the first time.

The store sold a lot of bottled water, so much so that the store had to bring in another shipment of Poland Spring later in the day. Cold cuts, cooked chicken, salad and other prepared meals were also in high demand.

Bolduc said sales met the target for the first day. “We’re right where we need to be. Can’t ask for anything more than that, considering what we went through and the storm.”

– By Stephen Beale