Sandy's Fine Food Emporium, the longtime Post Road market in Westerly, has new owners. William and Danielle Turrell have purchased the business from Jim and EmmaLee Goddiess, just as the beloved local food shop approaches its 75th anniversary.
According to a report from the Westerly Sun, the Turrells bought the market from the Goddiesses, who had owned Sandy's since 2006. The sale marks a new chapter for a business that has become a fixture of the busy Post Road marketplace, as described in earlier coverage from thewesterlysun.com.
From a Fruit Stand to a Westerly Institution
Sandy's traces its roots back to 1952, when brothers Sam and Mickey Cofone founded Sandy's Fruit Company in Pawcatuck, Connecticut, as a small fruit and vegetable stand, according to eatdrinkri.com. Two decades later, in 1972, the business moved to its current location and was incorporated as Sandy's Fine Food Emporium under Bob Hoffman's ownership, a shift the outlet called a pivotal year that transformed it into what it is known as today.
The market celebrated 50 years of incorporation in 2022, per the same account, having been described as a true Westerly staple. Along the way, Sandy's built its reputation on fine grocery items and, most notably, its in-house deli, offering entrees, soups and prepared foods that kept customers coming back.
A Kitchen Built on Prepared Foods and Reunions
Part of that deli reputation has come from the kitchen itself. Chefs Dave Miguel and Joe Collins joined chef Eric Perrin in Sandy's bustling kitchen, the Westerly outlet reported, with Miguel and Collins having begun their kitchen careers together back in 1974 as Chariho High School students washing dishes side by side.
Demand for Sandy's premium prepared foods had been steadily on the rise since the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, The Westerly Sun's report noted, with former owner Jim Goddiess saying at the time, “We're having our busiest year ever, without a question.” The market's current website lists house-made soups and salads, meals to go, house-made desserts and sandwiches among its offerings.
Surviving Competition and Changing Tastes
Sandy's has weathered plenty over the decades. The business stayed in operation despite a big box supermarket becoming a direct competitor, economic highs and lows, ever-changing eating trends, and the COVID-19 pandemic, per the same eatdrinkri.com account.
Exactly how the ownership change will affect day-to-day operations at Sandy's has not been detailed, and no statement from William or Danielle Turrell about their plans for the business has been made public. For now, the market continues to operate on Post Road as it nears a milestone nearly three-quarters of a century in the making.
