LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Thorntons opened its newest location, a nonprofit community convenience store in Louisville, Ky., in partnership with the Louisville Urban League, on April 13. This first-of-a-kind store operates as a sustainable not-for-profit venture, with the Louisville Urban League reinvesting all profits from sales to promote community equity and empowerment, the retailer said.
The exterior-facing storefront is in the new Norton Healthcare Sports and Learning Center.
Take a closer look …
“We are proud to now be a part of and serve the West Louisville community,” said Simon Richards, president and CEO of Thorntons. “This much anticipated store provides Thorntons with a sustainable way to give back and invest in the neighborhood. We thank Sadiqa Reynolds and the Louisville Urban League for this opportunity and are excited about the positive impact our partnership will have on the community.”
*Click here for a CSP Outlook Leadership Community Talks From the Top with Simon Richards as he discusses the not-for-profit store.
The retail outlet will increasingly feature products from local minority-owned businesses such as Louisville-based Georgia’s Sweet Potato Pie Co., started by Dawn (pictured) and Deyago Urrutia in 2017. Georgia’s donates books to children in a project called Pies with Purpose. Thorntons guests can support this project by purchasing Georgia’s sweet potato pies, cheesecakes, brownies and cookies.
The location will also serve as a local recruitment and training facility to increase access for residents to employment options across the Thorntons network, the company said.
In related news, Thorntons said it is hiring 350 team members companywide to ensure stores are staffed for the busy summer selling season.
Other partners whose donations helped to make the community store a reality include Alto-Shaam, Apter Industries/Lipari, CBE, Frito-Lay, Glenn’s Commercial Service, Grainger, ICEE, Leonard Brush, Marlite, Office Depot, Pepsi, Red Bull, RotoSolutions, S&D Coffee, Schaerer - SEB Professional, Source North America Corp., Stratus Signs and Wasserstrom Co., said Thorntons.
Louisville-based Thorntons operates more than 200 c-stores in six states: Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee and Florida. It ranks No. 38 in CSP’s 2020 Top 40 Update to the 2020 Top 202 ranking of the largest c-store chains in the United States.
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