POCATELLO — The new WinCo Foods store will officially open its doors for business on March 24, complete with a grand opening ceremony, one company official said Tuesday.

    “We are indeed getting close to the opening of that new store in Pocatello,” said Michael Read, vice president of public and legal affairs for Boise-based WinCo. “Certainly we are looking forward to it.”

    The day will come complete with WinCo officials on hand, but the hoopla, Read said, will be rather tame compared to some retailers.

    “It’s really pretty low key,” he said. “We usually just raise the flag, say the pledge of allegiance, and open the doors for business.”

    Another sign that the grand opening is approaching is when those living in the Pocatello area see a mailer from the grocery store. Read said WinCo will usually send out some coupons in the mail prior to the opening of a new store. They will also have several in-store specials.

    Construction of the new 94,000-square-foot store, located at 1030 Yellowstone Ave., began last year on the property where the old Fred Meyer once stood. It will be more than twice the size of WinCo’s current, 42,400-square-foot Pocatello location.

    The larger store also means more employees, about 180 for the new location compared with a little fewer than 100 at the current store.

    Read also said that those who frequent the current location who have never been in the grocery chain’s current building design will find significant changes in the store’s layout.

    For example, the current store has two main aisles running from side to side with multiple grocery aisles running form the front to the back of the store. The new location will feature four main aisles running from the front to the back of the store with multiple grocery aisles running from side to side.

    Although the new WinCo’s official opening is March 24, a walk inside the current location will quickly reveal a slightly different timeline.

    Notices posted throughout the existing WinCo state that the current store will close its doors at 6 p.m. on March 12, and that the doors at the new location will open at 6 a.m. on March 14. According to a notice in the deli area, that department will close on March 3.

    Read, not 100 percent certain of that timeline, said it could be the current plan, but also said that plan could be subject to change “at any point along the way.”