Dick’s Market, a grocery store that has been owned and operated by the same family for the past 65 years, is being sold to the Leppink’s chain of stores.
Leppink’s has food markets in Belding, Stanton, Lakeview, Howard City, Newaygo and Spring Lake, mostly north of Grand Rapids. Word on the street is that the sale will be final in October.
Dick’s Market was opened in downtown Dorr in 1955 by Dick and Rusty Dutkiewicz. They moved the grocery into the Hillcrest Mall east of Dorr on 142nd Avenue in 1987and then located across the street at 16231 142nd Ave. in 2008.
Dick and Rusty came up with the motto, “Our Family Serving Your Family Since 1955.” All of their children worked at the store throughout the years.
Dick Dutkiewicz retired in 1998 after 43 years running the grocery and serving as Dorr Township Clerk. Control of the family business passed to his daughter and son-in-law, Cathy and Ron Merren, and son and daughter-in-law Steve and Tammy Dutkiewicz.
Steve Dutkiewicz continues as store owner today.
“We haven’t changed it because all the employees we’ve had working here have always ‘owned it’ as if they were family,” Steve told the Penasee Globe.
Dick’s grocery distributor, IGA, pulled out of West Michigan in the 1960s and he subsequently asked for membership in Spartan Stores, but was denied because Jay DeJong ran a Spartan store in the next block. As a result, Dick was forced to haul his own groceries every week from a cash and carry warehouse.
After Dick’s moved into Hillcrest Mall, the grocery was admitted into the fraternity of Spartan Stores.
Dick decided to begin making his own kielbasa. In the 1970s and it was a hit among his customers so he added bratwurst and breakfast sausage to his offerings.
“Dick’s faithful customers knew to ‘buy local”’ before it was cool to shop local,” Steve told the Globe at the store’s 60th anniversary. “It’s easy to understand that you really are ‘supporting local’ when you see that your neighbor works at the store to help support her family.”
But family and local will no longer describe Dick’s Market later this year.
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