Hamlin community welcomes new Walmart Supercenter

The new Walmart Supercenter on New Independence Parkway officially opens Wednesday, Nov. 16.

By Danielle Hendrix
| 7:06 p.m. November 14, 2016

Walmart Supercenter Store Manager Aaron Brothers is excited to open the store right before the height of the holiday season.

West Orange Times & Observer
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WINTER GARDEN For Independence and Hamlin residents, the wait is over: the new Walmart Supercenter on New Independence Parkway is here.

The 190,000-square-foot facility will open Wednesday, Nov. 16, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 7 a.m. According to a press release, the grand-opening celebration also includes presentations of $4,000 in grants from Walmart to local community groups, including Winter Garden Police Athletic League and Give Kids the World Village in Kissimmee.

“We want to be the store of the community and be a good neighbor,” said Aaron Brothers, store manager. “We are excited to open and be a part of the Winter Garden Community just in time for the holidays.”

Brothers himself has been with the company for 18 years, having started as a part-time associate and worked his way up the chain. He most recently managed two stores in Texas before moving to the Winter Garden area four months ago to open and manage the Winter Garden store.

The new Walmart Supercenter will cater to Hamlin and Independence residents.

“I like all the benefits Walmart has to offer, and there’s never a dull moment,” he said. “Working with people and the things that Walmart has to offer when taking care of our customers and associates is something that makes me feel like this is the place for me, and this is where I want to be.”

The new store has some unique community charm, having incorporated bits of the surrounding area in the design process. There are windows above the front doors filled with designs and lights that go hand-in-hand with the theme of the Hamlin community, and skylights freckle the ceiling to let natural light in.

“The theme of the building is catered to the Hamlin community, so we’ve really made it more a community type of store so customers in this area see the same type of look as what their homes look like,” Brothers said. “We’re also proud of adding a new fill (gas) station, I think the closest fill station to us is about two-and-one-half miles. It helps us out with keeping customers in this community, they don’t have to go so far.”

Hotdoggers in Hamlin

Northern natives Isaac Wilker and Rachel Bruns drive cross-country to promote the company they work for. You may have seen them on the highway, too: The 27-foot-long Oscar Mayer Wienermobile they drive is hard to miss.

Wilker and Bruns are “hotdoggers” who visit cities around the United States and promote Oscar Mayer with the help of the Wienermobile — which, in hot-dog terms, is 140,500 hot dogs heavy, 60 hot dogs long and 24 hot dogs high.

“Isaac and myself are extremely lucky to be representing this brand and being able to connect with all walks of life,” Bruns said. “We usually are in a new location every week so it’s up to you to make the city your home, interacting with people of the city and especially at events. You really don’t know who’s going to come up to you, and that’s what makes it magical.”

The Wienermobile will hit Winter Garden this week at the Walmart Supercenter’s grand opening. Wilker and Bruns will be there handing out “Wienermobilia” — stickers, postcards, Wienermobile whistles and more — and letting residents see the inside of the vehicle from 7 a.m. to noon.

“I think there will be a lot of excitement surrounding out visit because of the grand opening,” Wilker said. “It’s a wonderful way to make so many people every day. No two days are alike. It’s a wonderful way to reach out and touch people’s lives.”

More self-checkout lanes have been added and equipped with Walmart Pay, which works with a downloadable smartphone app. It has all the works of the typical Walmart Supercenter — a pharmacy, auto center, vision center and garden center — but the pickup area has been relocated to the front of the store, next to the customer-service desk. And rather than a Subway or McDonald’s within, Dunkin’ Donuts is the retailer.

In the produce area, there is a range of locally grown products — including sweet corn, bell peppers, mushrooms and fresh herbs — and the supercenter also has a range of gluten-free and organic foods to choose from.

Brothers’ team currently consists of about 250 associates, but he is looking to hire up to 50 more. With the store is opening right around the height of the holiday season, Brothers said his priority is ensuring that his team is stocked and ready to serve holiday shoppers. However, being the go-to, one-stop shop is something he’s looking forward to offering the community year-round.

Store associate Carmen Poggi was instrumental in helping ensure the grocery department was stocked.

“Right now we really want to make sure we’re catering to the Thanksgiving season, so we want to make sure we have all the right items for the Thanksgiving shopper,” he said. “I think the most exciting thing is what we’re going to be able to offer to this community…I think our location is going to be able to offer something to this community that they haven’t had in a very long time.”

Contact Danielle Hendrix at [email protected].