Giant Food Inc. is building a gas station at one of its stores and looking for opportunities to put up others as it joins a national trend among supermarkets aiming to be a “one-stop shopping experience.”The supermarket began construction on a gas
station at its Pasadena, Md., store in early November and expects to open it in February, spokesman Jamie Miller told the Baltimore Business Journal. The self-serve station will be staffed by one person at a small kiosk and be open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
“We’re going to continue to look for ways to serve our customers and offer them convenience,” Miller said. He declined to detail any plans for other gas stations in the area, citing competition as the reason.
Giant, which is the region’s largest grocer with 113 stores in Maryland, isn’t the first supermarket chain with operations in the region to diversify its offerings. Safeway Inc. has gas stations at 10 of its 75 Maryland stores and 350 gas stations nationwide.