10/08/2026
For more than six years, my family and I have poured our hearts and souls into our little Grocery Outlet here in Richland.
And when I say we've poured our hearts into it, I mean it.
Early mornings, late nights, weekends, holidays. Whatever it takes to keep the shelves stocked, the bargains coming, and the doors open for our community.
Over the past six years, I've spent an estimated 22,840 hours dedicated to this store.
To put that into perspective, that's the equivalent of nearly ELEVEN YEARS of working a traditional 40-hour-a-week job, packed into just six years.
That's thousands of hours unloading trucks, stocking shelves, searching for bargains, solving problems, cleaning floors, helping customers, and doing everything I can to make this store something special.
And I don't share that number because I want sympathy, recognition, or a pat on the back.
I share it because I want people to understand something.
This isn't just a grocery store to me. It's a dream I've spent six years of my life trying to build.
And while those 22,840 hours represent the time I've poured into this store, there's someone who deserves just as much credit for keeping this dream alive.
My wife, Nikki.
She's been beside me through every high and every low. She's celebrated the victories, carried the worries, listened to me talk endlessly about grocery stores, and supported this crazy dream every day. And through it all, Nikki has been my biggest supporter, my sounding board, and the person who reminds me why we started this journey in the first place and I couldn't have done it without her.
Every morning when I walk through those doors, I have the same goal I had when we first opened: to give the people of the Tri-Cities a grocery store they can be proud of, with incredible bargains that help hardworking families stretch their dollars a little further.
Are we a perfect store? Absolutely not.
Do we sometimes make mistakes? You bet.
Are there things we can improve? Every single day.
But here's what I can promise you.
There isn't a single day that goes by when we're not trying to be better than we were yesterday.
And I have an incredible team of hardworking people who show up every day and help make that happen.
Now, I know we're not Walmart. We're not Costco. We're not one of those giant grocery chains with seemingly unlimited resources and massive advertising budgets.
And that's okay.
We're something different.
We're a locally owned and operated small business, run by a family that lives right here in the Tri-Cities.
We're your neighbors. Our employees are your neighbors. Our kids have grown up here. We care about this community because it's our community, too.
And when you walk through our doors, you're not just another transaction on a corporate spreadsheet.
You're the reason we're here.
But here's the part I really want to share.
I know there are people throughout the Tri-Cities who have never stepped foot inside our store.
Maybe you've driven past us a hundred times. Maybe you assume we're just another discount store. Maybe you've heard of Grocery Outlet but have never really understood what makes us different.
Or maybe you've shopped with us once or twice, but it's been a while.
I'm asking you to give us a chance.
Not because you owe us anything. You don't.
Not because I think you should stop shopping at Costco, Walmart, WinCo, or anywhere else. Those stores have their place, too.
But because I genuinely believe we have something special to offer.
We're the store where you might find your favorite name-brand cereal for half the price. Where you can discover an incredible deal on something you didn't even know you needed. Where the bargains change constantly, and every shopping trip can feel like a little treasure hunt.
We might not have everything on your grocery list.
But I promise we're going to work our tails off to make sure what we DO have is worth your trip.
And to those of you who have supported us over these past six years...
I don't know if I could ever adequately express what that means to me and my family.
To the customers who come in every week.
To the ones who tell their friends about us.
To those who share our Facebook posts, comment on our deals, and recommend us when someone asks where to shop.
To the customers who stop me in the aisles just to say hello or tell me how much they love our store.
YOU are the reason we keep going.
Every single purchase matters more than you probably realize.
Every dollar spent with us helps support local jobs, local families, and a small business that's working incredibly hard to earn its place in this community.
I've worked holidays, weekends, overnights. I've spent countless nights worrying about the store, thinking about what we could do better, and wondering how to reach more people.
There have been incredible days, and there have been days that have tested me in ways I never imagined.
But through it all, one thing hasn't changed.
I still believe in this store. I still believe in our team. And I still believe in what we're trying to build here.
I'm not asking you to make us your only grocery store.
I'm not even asking you to make us your main grocery store.
I'm simply asking for the opportunity to earn a little piece of your grocery shopping routine.
Come visit us. Bring a friend. Walk the aisles. See what you can find. And if we fall short of your expectations, tell me. Because I want to know, and I want us to get better.
At the end of the day, we're not a perfect store.
We're just a hardworking local family, supported by an incredible team, doing our very best to bring something good to the Tri-Cities.
And behind those 22,840 hours is a wife who believed in the dream, a family that sacrificed for it, and a community that has given us the opportunity to keep chasing it.
22,840 hours and counting.
And tomorrow morning, I'll get up and do it all over again.
Because I believe in this store. I believe in this community. And I believe that small businesses like ours still matter.
From the bottom of our heart, thank you for giving us the opportunity to serve you.
— Mike and Nikki
Your Richland Grocery Outlet Owners
P.S. If you've never shopped with us before, I'd love to meet you. And if you're already one of our regulars, would you do me a favor? Share this post and tell someone what you love about our store. Sometimes the best advertising a small business can have is a neighbor telling another neighbor, "You really ought to check this place out." ❤️
