Cingari Family Markets will cut the ribbon on the newly expanded ShopRite of Fairfield on September 15 at 10 a.m., marking the finish line for a four-year renovation campaign that has now touched all 12 of the family company's southwestern Connecticut supermarkets. The Black Rock Turnpike store grew into the space next door once occupied by Party City, and shoppers who kept driving past construction fencing over the past months watched the transformation happen in real time, since the store never closed during the work.
According to PR Underground, the store at 1975 Black Rock Turnpike stayed open throughout construction while crews expanded its grocery aisles, bakery and floral department, international cheese section, and dry goods and health-focused product lines. Frozen food and dairy cases were added, along with more grab-and-go meal options, and the store now carries an updated overall look. Per Royal Properties, the expansion into the former Party City's 12,765-square-foot footprint pushed the supermarket's total size up more than 30 percent, to 54,328 square feet.
Thomas Cingari Sr., president and CEO of Cingari Family Markets, framed the project around customer habits rather than square footage alone. “A store renovation is really about listening to your customers and adapting to how they shop today,” he said, per PR Underground, adding that Fairfield shoppers wanted more selection, more fresh and convenient options, and an easier overall shopping experience.
A Town Official With Her Own Fresh Start
Fairfield First Selectperson Christine Vitale is expected to attend the ribbon cutting alongside members of the Fairfield Chamber of Commerce. Vitale stepped into the town's top executive office in July 2025 after the passing of First Selectman Bill Gerber, and she went on to officially win a townwide special election in February 2026 with 56 percent of the vote, according to the same Royal Properties account of the project's local significance and, separately, Patch. Her presence ties the ceremony to a period of civic transition in Fairfield even as the retail story stands on its own.
The Fairfield location's history stretches back further than most shoppers might realize. The ShopRite at 1975 Black Rock Turnpike originally opened in September 2011, replacing a former Shaw's supermarket as the ShopRite chain expanded into Connecticut, per the Royal Properties account. That address had housed a First National grocery store dating back to the 1970s before that, giving the site a decades-long run as a neighborhood grocery anchor.
The Final Stop on a Four-Year Renovation Tour
The Fairfield project completes what the same Royal Properties report describes as the 12th full store renovation Cingari Family Markets has carried out across its 12 southwestern Connecticut locations over a four-year modernization push. The Stamford-based, family-owned company operates 10 ShopRite stores and two Grade A Markets, the latter both located in Stamford. Company materials describe the business as committed to investing in its stores and employees while continuing to give back to the communities it serves across southwestern Connecticut.
The renovation wave has coincided with a broader rebrand of Cingari's private-label products, according to Westfair Communications, which reports the company introduced restaurant-quality prepared meals, organic Italian olive oils, and gourmet marinara sauces designed to echo the aesthetic of the family's original 1929 store. Westfair also reports that Cingari now employs more than 2,600 workers across its 12 supermarket locations, spanning Stamford, Fairfield, Norwalk, Derby, Brookfield, Shelton, Danbury, Southbury, and Bristol.
A Family Business Rooted in a School Bus
Cingari Family Markets traces its origin to 1929, when founder Salvatore Cingari delivered groceries door-to-door in Stamford out of a converted refrigerated school bus, according to Westfair's account of the company's history. He opened the family's first Grade A Market in 1943, and the Cingari family later joined the Wakefern Food Corp. cooperative in 1991, setting the stage for its eventual growth into a ShopRite operator across the region.
The company's local standing has drawn recent recognition beyond the renovation itself. The Fairfield Chamber of Commerce named Cingari Family Markets its Business of the Year in June 2025 at its 79th annual member awards dinner in Bridgeport, according to the Connecticut Food Association, which cited the company's growth and economic leadership. The same account notes that through the Cingari Family Foundation, the company has donated more than $5 million to local schools, food pantries, and healthcare institutions across southwestern Connecticut, and that it was named a 2024 Top Connecticut Workplace by Hearst CT Media.
Questions about the ribbon-cutting event can be directed to Lynn Munroe, the press contact for Cingari Family Markets, who can be reached by phone at 845-548-1211 or by email at [email protected].
