The Central Coast’s homegrown grocery store will expand into Lompoc with the opening possibly as soon as late May.

Spencer’s Fresh Markets will open a third location in the former Big Lots building at 1009 North H St.

A new sign placed above the doors Monday declares “Coming soon.”

“We think that Lompoc is an evolving community and definitely is making some great strides over there,” said owner John Spencer, who has spent five decades in the grocery business.

He’s familiar with Lompoc after his work in the grocery industry in the 1980s and early 1990s while working for Williams Bros. and then Vons after the acquisition as he spent four years as district manager. 

“We just feel that our local neighborhood environment is going to be a good fit for Lompoc,” he added. 

The Lompoc store will fill 31,000 square feet, making it the largest of the trio, with the Morro Bay store in second and Santa Maria Valley’s being the smallest. 

 “Basically we’re walking into it with four empty white walls,” Spencer said, adding they will install entirely new fixtures throughout the space.

That includes “a beautiful new deli and kitchen area” equipped for a Santa Maria-style barbecue plus a typical Spencer’s meat department “which we are so known for,” noting the store will include Harris Ranch Beef.  The deli will feature Boar’s Head products.

“And of course all the local produce that’s available,” Spencer said, noting the business picks up produce from local fields to sell in the stores, providing the freshest fruits and vegetables for customers. 

The addition to the sign brought favorable comments from many future customers in Lompoc.

The business has already started hiring employee and training workers for the new store. 

They expect Spencer’s likely will hire as many as 75 new people with applications available online by clicking here. 

He said he hopes to get the new store open as soon as Memorial Day Weekend.

“But that is a very aggressive and optimistic time frame,” he said. “We’re pushing hard. It’s basically all going to come down to whether we can get our cases in on time.” 

The schedule could push into June, depending on deliveries of the equipment.

Spencer praised the city of Lompoc’s permitting process.

“Our experience with the city of Lompoc, the city manager, the planning crew over there and the City Council has been absolutely amazing,” Spencer said. “You talk about a great environment — pro-business. The whole team over there has been absolutely a breath of fresh air.”

“They have been absolutely an amazing community to do business with,” he added.

In an era filled with big box and chain stores, Spencer’s Fresh Market remains a family owned business operating much like the Central Coast’s two long-gone-but-beloved grocery businesses, Williams Bros. and Scolari’s. 

“We are definitely a rare breed nowadays. Independent grocers aren’t exactly a common thing anymore,” Spencer said. 

“But we feel it allows us to be a little bit more nimble. They can have all the big corporate offices they want in different locations, but we live in these communities. Our people live in these communities,” he said.

His wife, Beatrice McComb Spencer, grew up in Lompoc, graduating from Lompoc High School in 1977.

John Spencer, a Righetti High School graduate who grew up on a ranch east of Santa Maria, began his grocery career in 1971. 

He launched the first Spencer’s market in 1996 in the Santa Maria Valley.  

“This is the advantage we have. We can become part of the community and part of the neighborhood,” he added. 

After opening the Santa Maria Valley location on Orcutt Road in 1996, three years later Spencer’s added a Morro Bay store.

The firm previously had stores in Atascadero and Arroyo Grande, but lost leases leading to the closure of both locations.