New owners of Bay View's Groppi Food Market respect store's century-long history

In the roughly four months since brothers Casey and Ryan Foltz purchased G. Groppi Food Market in Bay View it has been business as usual. That’s just the way they want it.

Few, if any, changes are apparent in the snug store that’s been around for over a century. In fact, if one didn’t read the news, the ownership change in January might’ve been unnoticeable to customers of the store at 1441 E. Russell Ave.

The store never closed when the brothers bought it from John and Anne Nehring and the same assortment of groceries and specialty food goods is available.

“A big part of being here is that it’s a neighborhood establishment,” said Casey Foltz, who handles the store’s finances. “A lot of neighbors wouldn’t want to see us making drastic changes. There’s a history here that we’re trying to respect.”

Yet, the brothers also want to make their own mark on the store, and they’re finding synergistic benefits with their other food businesses. In an interview with the Journal Sentinel, Casey Foltz said the two have emphasized increasing the quality and number of ready-to-eat items sold at the hot bar and want to enhance the customer-experience.

The brothers also own the Foltz Family Market in the Milwaukee Public Market and, near Groppi's, Puddler’s Hall, which Casey purchased in 2011. The acquisition of Groppi Food Market has been a boon to the other businesses, he said.

The Foltz Family Market, which they acquired from the Nehring family in 2017, has consistently garnered more customers over the years. What hasn’t changed, though, is the small space the market operates in.

Larger kitchen provides growth opportunities

With Groppi’s larger kitchen, he said, the two have been able to move some prep work and related activities there to help keep up with growth.

“We’re able to utilize the space here … to take the burden off of (Foltz Family Market),” Casey Fotz said. “Hopefully the experience down there can be even better because of our work here.”

It works in reverse too.

The brothers have continued in-person events at the market, with things like a monthly wine club and beer tastings. As those have grown, Foltz said, the back room has started to grow small. Now they intend to begin hosting larger tastings at Puddler’s or, when the weather is acceptable, on the store’s patio.

Meanwhile, at Puddler’s, they plan to introduce a catering menu that features Groppi's fare.

In all, Foltz said, the initial months have been successful. With the close relationship between the brothers and the prior owners, they received monthly sales data and he said they’re outpacing what the store typically saw.

Some of that he credited to a relatively mild winter and the recent turn to spring temperatures, as well as an ownership swap that happened without interruption.

More customers are finding the Bay View market

Yet, Foltz admitted to facing a learning curve, whether it’s the myriad of vendors they work with, the profit margins needed in a grocery, or helping customers understand the quality difference between Groppi and supermarkets.

He credited the retention of almost all of the store’s employees with giving them strong continuity, as well.

“(The sales increases) are across the board,” he said. “We just have had more customers come in.”

As Bay View residents, the brothers have relished the chance to take over a neighborhood staple.

Ryan Foltz, who spearheads food operations, has a history at the store as well. He started working at Groppi Food Market at 17 and was the grocery’s meat manager. He later managed the former Nehring’s Family Market – now Foltz Family Market.

The store opened in 1913 and was operated by the Groppi family until the Nehrings bought it in 2003.

“The neighbors have been super supportive. I think maybe that’s part of why we’ve seen the uptick … I hope that we’ll keep it, you know, run it in a way that we can honor that history,” Foltz said. “It’s definitely an exciting aspect.”

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Owners of Groppi Food Market focus on respecting history in neighborhood