A p ril 29, 19Ö7. P o rtla n d O bserver, Paye 7
Wilshire Sentry Market A Family Affair
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Tom C onklin, o w n er of W ilshire Park
To Tom Conklin, w o rkin g in a super
m arket is alm ost as much fun as ow ning
one. A lm ost. The difference being, of
course, fam ily security and the challenge
of m aking your investm ent w ork success
fully.
The 39-year-old form er box boy from
Fred M eyer's Grocery fell in love w ith the
grocery business at the age of 15 and,
w ith the exception of a brief stint as a real
estate agent, has remained close to it ever
since.
W hen the o p p o rtu n ity to purchase the
old IGA grocery on 33rd Ave. in the W il
shire Park area of Northeast Portland
came about last summer, Conklin jum ped
at the o p p o rtu n ity . A fte r a brief closure
fo r rem odeling and expansion, the store
re-opened last A ugust as part of the fa s t
gro w in g Sentry M arkets chain.
W ith his w ife Joie, w ho serves as b o o k
keeper and handles dairy products (sons
Pat and Craig are day and night managers
respectively), the business offers an a t
mosphere th at com plim ents its custom ers
and the neighborhood.
Open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
the store caters largely to neighboring re
sidents w ho like the convenience of the
S u p erm arket
is show n flanked by w ife Joie (LI and son Pat. on right Photo by Richard J Brow n
in house snack bar and delicatessen. In
fact, "T h e p o p u la rity of the tw o eateries
is a m ajor fa cto r in the gradual custom er
increase," according to Tom. "M o re and
more of the old neighborhood cro w d are
returning, and they, along w ith the new
shoppers, add a vote of confidence to my
decision to invest in this business," he
added.
In listening to T om 's philosophy on
entreprenuership, he clearly brings into
focus the respect he m aintains for the first
rule of ow ning your ow n business: turn
a p r o fit. "In this business, you m u s t
have custom er satisfaction - w ith o u t it,
you have problem s.
"W h e n I first took over this franchise,
I had some ideas about some things that
needed to be done if the business was g o
ing to survive. A neighborhood grocery
must know its shoppers' likes and dislikes
stocking item s that are regularly p u r
chased or requested and adopting a busi-
n e ss/co m m u n ity relationship that c o m p li
ments the neighborhood. W hen we e x
panded, we decided to add a larger
variety of grocery items, placing special
emphasis on the produce, meat and dairy
sections.
Our produce manager does an
excellent job of offering produce shop
pers a large and attractive selection of
fresh produce and fruits. The new ly in
stalled delicatessen w ith its meats, pastas
and salads is very popular. The snack bar
now has 12 employees as opposed to the
initial 3, due to our lunch and river traf-
m h 1 *
fic ," stated Tom .
W ith most of his employees being h o ld
overs from the previous ow ner, they pride
themselves in being on a first name basis
w ith a large percentage of the n eig h b o r
hood shoppers (m ostly seniors). As an
added service, escort service to the c u s to
mer's vehicle is provided upon request at
night by the store's security.
Holding the lease on the entire facility
(the com plex also houses a coin operated
laundrom at and dry cleaners), Conklin
does not rule out the possibility of further
expansion. " I f we generate a need or if
custom er interest m andates it, we will
consider it , " fie added.
One thing is for sure: the fam ily oper
ated business has long-range plans for
keeping Sentry a fam ily operated busi
ness. W aiting in the w ings are three more
Conklin o ffsprings w h o are eager to learn
the business, as well.
Wilshire Sentry Market
5400 N.E. 33rd
284-0644
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