Preston’s father, Homer, founded the Springboro IGA in 1957, and Preston took over the day-to-day operations in 1997. The store at 15 N. Main St. had been owned by Preston and his sister, Janie Moreland. Last October, Diane Preston, Preston’s wife, bought Moreland’s share of the company, leaving the husband-wife team as co-owners.
Doug Preston acknowledged that the grocery store has felt the pinch from competition.
“All small businesses are struggling,” he said. “It’s hard to fight the big corporations.”
But the independent grocer is now expanding the variety of the products the store carries and re-stocking shelves faster, Preston said. And two weeks ago, the IGA expanded its hours, opening an hour earlier on weekdays, and is now open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays, and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
The grocery-store market has become even more hotly competitive in recent years, especially in Dayton’s south suburbs. Kroger opened a new store last year in the Austin Landing development in Miami Twp. just north of Springboro, competing for customers who also have a Dorothy Lane Market store in town. Meanwhile, large national retailers such as Target and Walmart are adding grocery items to their stores in an effort to capture a portion of the market.
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