Dowagiac Loses A Beloved Grocery Store After Decades Of Service
Harding's Friendly Market has been a staple grocery store in Dowagiac for many years, but unfortunately, the news has broken that their location will be closing for good on January 15.
The news was posted about in the Facebook group Dowagiac Now & Then, and people in the comment section are already buzzing about the news with updates about some potential moves the company will be making in the area.
One person claims that the manager at the Dowagiac store is going to be the new manager at the Berrien Springs store.
Another person, Frank W., is saying that Harding’s bought the Decatur Village Market and will be changing it back into a Harding's store. The store was originally a Hardings, which was bought by Village Market in 1989, which is very coincidental.
A lot of people have very sentimental feelings about losing the store, including Terry W, who talks about how the store has had an impact on her and her family‘s lives:
That's so sad. That store has been in Dowagiac forever. Even in a different location when I was a kid. That is just so very sad. Can't believe it. My grandpa worked there in back when I was a kid.
The building that the current Harding sits in in Dowagiac was actually once a Kroger a long time ago. There were once many Kroger locations in West Michigan, and up until recently, there have been none.
That was until a recent announcement that they would be opening up a Kroger location where JoAnn fabrics and Chuck E. Cheese used to reside on Westnedge Road in Portage.