Food at shuttered Dom’s, Foxtrot at risk of going to waste
CHICAGO — Officials from the Greater Chicago Food Depository are hoping to save some of the products from two recently closed grocers.
Foxtrot and Dom’s Kitchen and Market locations closed a little more than a week ago but products remain on shelves of both retailers and are at risk of going to waste.
“We would be thrilled to help coordinate food rescue along with our community partners — frontline food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters — who can quickly get that food into the hands of people who need it,” Jim Conwell with the Greater Chicago Food Depository told WGN.
The problem? The depository has received no response from the owners of the recently combined retailers. WGN’s efforts were also unsuccessful.
Dom’s, Foxtrot stores in Chicago close months after merge
Hunger is an issue across the nation, with an estimated one in five households experiencing food insecurity. Since 1986, the GCFD has worked to collect food from retailers that’s still good to eat and get it to needy families.
“We can move quickly if we get authorization for food rescue,” Conwell said.
Employees of the shuttered stores said they’re still feeling the disappointment of the abrupt closures. Abby Stinson is the former store manager at the Wicker Park location. She said she loved her job and had little heads up that things were going downhill.
“Anyone that was in the store might have noticed that we were maybe low on some products, and that was truly the only indication was a few days before,” she said.
Stephanie Widman of Sweet Thing was sidelined as well.
“I got up in the morning, the day was as usual and by 9 o’clock I had heard that they had closed both Foxtrot and Dom’s, which were both our accounts,” the supplier of tasty treats to the retailers said.
She said the outstanding balance of tens of thousands of dollars owed to her is tough to swallow.
“They helped us grow scale and learn, so it’s unfortunate. But I’m so happy we got a chance,” Widman said.
Former Foxtrot, Dom’s employees rally for severance pay after closures
Two produce suppliers are suing Dom’s Kitchen and Market. Anthony Marano Company and Market Cuts claim the closed retailer failed to pay them back to the tune of roughly $208,000, Crain’s Chicago Business reported. In the first lawsuit filed in federal court in Chicago by one of the grocers’ retailers, Anthony Marano claims it is owed nearly $205,000.
Former employees have also filed at least three lawsuits, accusing the companies of violating workers’ rights.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV.
