GREEN BAY, Wis — A proposed grocery store for downtown Green Bay could bring a 24-thousand square foot shop to north Monroe Avenue in 2021. And even the smallest of grocery store owners, one located just over 2 miles from the proposed location say, they’re not opposed to the idea.
For 50 years now the Red Owl in Green Bay has stood the test of time. It's a franchise that once had nearly 450 stores across the Midwest but today, is one of only a few that still remain.
The current owners, Justin and Jared Mason say they learned the tricks of the trade from their father and uncle who helped establish the business in 1969. Justin and Jared, the current co-owners say they have taken the reigns of management at the shop and over the last 10 years have made several changes to make their 5-thousand square foot grocery store the most profitable it's ever been.
The brothers say they know the value of having a full service grocery store in an area, that doesn't exist today, and that's why despite the proposed construction of a new grocery store just two and a half miles away from them, it’s not a concern.
“We’ve always had competition in the grocery industry and it’s never going to stop, it’s never going away. We’re never going to be the only grocery store in the city. We run our business and we take care of our business and that’s the most important thing,” says Jared Mason.
The Mason Brothers Red Owl was once the largest grocery store in Green Bay according to the Masons and just this year the owners tell us they had one of the most profitable years on record.
