It used to be a two-flag, grilled-cheese world: American and Swiss. Curious by virtue of its chalky rind, Brie made quick holiday entries and exits.
That was then.
Today, Stew Leonard”™s annually sells more than 500,000 pounds of cheese and is vesting itself more deeply in broader cheese offerings, employing marketing tools akin to those used to sell wine.
The supermarket, with locations in Danbury, Norwalk and Yonkers, said on its site that it has opened newly expanded cheese shops ”“ called the Cheese Shoppe ”“ offering more specialty cheeses from around the world.
The new feature is a response to a high demand, the store said.
“Over the past few years, Stew Leonard’s cheese specialists have seen our Brie and Gouda sales both rise in sales by about 10 percent,” President-CEO Stew Leonard Jr. said. “We realized our shoppers were just as passionate in learning about cheese as they are about wine, and they were interested in not only where and how a cheese is made, but in the stories behind the cheesemaker as well. Our new Cheese Shoppe really celebrates my family’s roots in dairy farming.”
Cheeses at the shop include favorites such as Swiss, blue and Gouda, plus the likes of double cream brie and sheep and goat cheeses.
