Grocer listens to the needs of his customers

Harrington Hundreds has changed its Sunday shop hours to better meet the needs of its customers.

The grocer will now be open from 8am to 2pm instead of 1pm to 6pm on Sundays.

The store switched to the new hours on January 4.

Anthony Aguiar, owner, told the Bermuda Sun that decades ago Harrington Hundreds and the Hitching Post in Somerset were the only grocery stores open on Sunday. Mr Aguiar said they were later restricted to being open in the afternoon based on their size.

“Many of the big markets followed suit and also opened on Sunday afternoon. The laws regarding opening hours and Sunday trading of wines and spirits and have been changed recently and we decided to back to Sunday morning hours.”

He said the earlier hours create “a better quality of life for my customers and my staff. They would have the afternoon off for their lives. It’s easier to arrange caregivers in the morning.

Requests

“But those are all side effects, but the drive was to do to customers’ requests.”

Mr Aguiar said his customers wanted to get on with their lives and wanted to get their grocery shopping out of the way in the morning.

“They wanted their afternoons for family life, activities, projects — camping, beaching, boating, sports events. 

“This has been an easy decision. They requested it; we did it; and they rewarded us for it. This becomes a service to the community because not only can they find the other bigger stores open Sunday, they now have us as a choice for the morning. They now have grocery stores open all day long.”

Church

He said the few hours Harrington Hundreds is open in the afternoon, allows it to catch the church crowd.

“We have some folks come in very early in the morning, then there is a little lull at church time, then it gets busy after church. I’m sure the other stores are doing well, but we’re catering to our segment of the market.”