MONTEVIDEO — A business that has been a part of downtown Montevideo’s identity and a draw for more than two decades is changing hands.
Bill’s Supermarket will become the Montevideo Market at the start of business Sunday. Tim and Jodi Dittes, known locally as the owners of Don’s Food Pride in Appleton and in Dawson, are purchasing the store from Bill and Connie Pauling, its owner for the past 21½ years.
When you’re the store owner, “you can’t give can’t give your boss two weeks' notice,” said Bill Pauling. “So when opportunity comes along … ”
Pauling has been an independent grocery store owner in rural communities for more than 42 years. A Montevideo native, he started working at Gary’s Red Owl when he was 15 years old. He took advantage of ownership opportunities to operate stores in Clark, South Dakota, nearby Madison, Minnesota, and in Dickinson, North Dakota, before purchasing what became Bill’s Supermarket.
“We raised four kids in grocery carts,” he laughed.
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Tim and Jodi Dittes own and operate grocery stores in five rural Minnesota communities and three Iowa communities. Tim has been in the grocery business since his father purchased the Appleton store in 1977.
“Location,” said Tim Dittes when asked about the new venture. Montevideo offers a good market, and the store will work well in conjunction with the Dawson and Appleton stores, he said.
It’s also the hometown of Jodi Dittes. She noted that the store’s location in Montevideo’s central commercial district makes it accessible to many of the community’s senior residents.
Pauling said he and his wife had not really been thinking of retiring from the business until the Ditteses expressed interest in the store. “We thought about it. Prayed about it. Thought about it. Prayed about it,’’ he said.
Changes are coming to rural grocery stores across the state. A University of Minnesota study found that between the years 2000 and 2013, rural Minnesota lost 14 percent of its grocery stores. A survey by the University in 2015 of independent grocery store owners in communities of under 2,500 population found that two-thirds of the store owners were looking at getting out of the business within the next 10 years, but had no transition plans in place.
Tim Dittes said that in the past month and a half, he has had conversations with five different store owners who are looking to sell their stores.
Montevideo experienced the loss of a large Coborn’s Supermarket in July 2018. Dittes is confident that the Montevideo market can continue to support the independent grocery along with the Walmart Supercenter on the east edge of town.
He pointed out that Bill’s Supermarket has built a strong and loyal customer base. The store is also up-to-date. The Paulings have invested in a variety of upgrades in recent years, with a focus on improving the store’s energy efficiency to lower its carbon footprint and reduce operation costs.
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Yet, Bill Pauling said his business model has been based on the theme song from the old "Cheers" television show: “I want to go to a place where everybody knows my name,” he said.
Tom Pauling, son of Bill and Connie Pauling, has been helping manage the store but is looking at a variety of other options. He said the store has emphasized customer service along with local foods, fresh produce and fresh meats.
Dittes said customers should not expect anything less going forward. He said the heart of a grocery store is its meat department, and that this store will continue its tradition of fresh-cut meats.
There will be changes. The store’s private label brand will change to Our Family. Dittes said his wholesale supplier will make it possible to offer an even larger selection of fresh produce. New signs will be going up in coming weeks, and Dittes said he’s looking at making other upgrades in the months ahead.
All of the store’s 26 employees will remain. The Paulings intend to remain available to assist with the transition.
