Located at the intersection of Wall Triana and Browns Ferry Road, Madison’s new Kroger opened on Sept. 7. RECORD PHOTO/GREGG L. PARKER

MADISON – The wait is over as shoppers flooded Madison’s new Kroger supermarket for its opening on Sept. 7.

Covering 100,000 square foot, the new store replaces the former Madison store at 300 Hughes Road and will employ over 225 total associates (including transfers from the other store) for an increase of 100 employees. The store represents a $20.5-million investment in the community.

Kroger’s address is 4579 Wall Triana at the intersection of Browns Ferry Road.

“We’re really excited about our new store and can’t wait for our customers to see it,” store manager Michael Gayle said. “Additional space will allow us to provide our customers more variety and additional features that we didn’t have before.”

The store features a bistro with freshly prepared to-go meals, fresh sushi, gourmet cheese shop, salad and hot soup bar, made-to-order Boar’s Head sandwiches, service meat and seafood and natural and organic offerings. In addition, shopper will find a floral shop, Starbucks, large wine section, kitchen place, Kroger Pharmacy with a drive-through pickup window and Kroger Fuel Center.

On Sept. 6 at the former Hughes Road location, all perishable items were donated to North Alabama Food Bank. Dry goods were distributed to other Kroger locations.

Starting Sept. 14, this new Kroger will become the first store in the Madison area to offer ClickList, the company’s new online ordering service. Customers order on-line at kroger.com/clicklist. On the website, the customer creates their shopping list, selects a pickup time and places the online order.

Next, a Kroger store associate handpicks the order and stores it in temperature-appropriate zones until the customer arrives. The customer will pull their vehicle in the designated pickup lane and a store associate will load the order. As an introductory offer, Kroger will waive the $4.95 service charge for each customer’s first three orders.

As part of the celebration, Kroger will present a $30,000 check to Huntsville Hospital Foundation’s Liz Hurley Ribbon Run representing the pledge the company has made for this year’s event. Bob Jones High School Band will entertain and will receive a donation.

Festivities will also include the unveiling of a mural by area artist Logan Tanner. The mural illustrates the City of Madison’s past and present. Together, the images show a city that celebrates its past as it moves continually into the future, Gayle said.

The store is certified by Energy Star, which provides an incentive for businesses to reduce energy consumption. The Madison store achieved this rating through HVAC control, LED lighting, skylights and other energy efficiencies.

The grand opening celebration will continue about two weeks.  On Grand Opening Day, Sept. 7, the first 300 customers at 7 a.m. received coupons for breakfast items, including orange juice, sausage, eggs and English muffins. Drawings for $300 Kroger Gift Cards were held.

Customers will save on fuel on Sept. 9-11 by receiving 20 cents off per gallon with their Kroger Plus Card. They can redeem Kroger Fuel Points to save even more at the pump.

Kroger is one of the nation’s largest retail grocery chains. The Nashville Division operates 93 stores and 80 fuel centers in North Alabama, Middle and East Tennessee and South Kentucky. Kroger’s focus areas for giving are grades K-12 education, feeding the hungry, women’s health and wellness and other grass-roots community initiatives.