Any time an old standby goes away, it’s sad for everybody involved. That’s certainly the case for the Smucker’s store and café, which will close its doors for good Jan. 16.
This story, though, comes with a twist, a happy one that will benefit the entire Akron-Canton region and contribute toward solving what has become a national crisis: food insecurity.
The store, located a mile north of U.S. Route 30 on state Route 57 (Wadsworth Road), is not going away. It’s simply being given away. Following an announcement in September, the J.M. Smucker Co. is donating its 19,000-square-foot building and more than 30 acres of land to the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank.
“We have always believed that success as an organization is thriving along with all those who count on our business, and that begins in our backyard here in Northeast Ohio,” Mark Smucker, chief executive officer and chair of the board, said in a statement at the time of the announcement. “Our longtime partners at the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank continue to do incredible work to help address food insecurity in our community, and we saw a unique opportunity to extend our support through this donation.”…