Like hundreds of other people across North Central Florida, Alan Hitchcock started hearing rumors last month about Hitchcock’s Markets closing. 

The Alachua-native’s father, Bob Hitchcock, and grandfather, Robert Hitchcock Sr., founded the local grocery store and pharmacy on Main Street in Alachua in 1945.  

Alan Hitchcock also worked for the company, growing it into 12 locations with 850 employees and bringing in $150 million annually at its peak. But since selling it in 2008, he’s had more distance from the business. 

Hitchcock’s currently operates stores in Alachua, East Palatka, Hawthorne, Indiantown, Interlachen, Jasper, Keystone Heights, Newberry, Trenton and Williston.  

But last week, Mainstreet Daily News confirmed Hitchcock’s Markets is officially closing as various store managers said the company is selling all 10 locations to various grocery chains, such as Winn-Dixie and Bravo. 

On Tuesday, Alan Hitchcock told Mainstreet that he’s sad to see the stores switch ownership. But he’s also glad the new identities will reflect the changes that have been overriding the company’s original image and mission for a while. 

“It’s sad to see the name disappear, but also a relief as the philosophy and the management styles have been different,” he said.  

Under his family’s leadership, Alan Hitchcock said Hitchcock’s Markets’ philosophy prioritized the vital role supermarkets play for their communities inside and outside store walls. He said this was because service was inherent to his father’s DNA and shaped everything Hitchcock’s prided itself in as the hometown grocer.  

On top of running the markets, Bob Hitchcock, a WWII veteran, worked as a volunteer firefighter for 20 years and city commissioner for over 17. Alan Hitchcock said he did his best to carry on his dad’s legacy for Hitchcock’s after he died in 1995. 

“When I was growing up, we were in small towns and we realized that the community depended on us for many things, not only from a monetary standpoint but also from an involvement standpoint,” Alan Hitchcock said. “[Dad] was involved in everything, so he set the example. And then I tried to continue that legacy and stay very active in all the different organizations and the schools because we wanted to be a big part of, and the heartbeat of, the community.” 

Over the past 80 years of operation, Alan said Hitchcock’s provided customers with one of “the most outstanding meat departments, a deli that served fried chicken second to none, and a bakery that had fresh, hot donuts every morning, accompanied by fresh produce supplied by many local farmers.” 

According to various Facebook posts discussing Hitchcock’s closings, community members agreed. 

“Please don’t take away my fried chicken!!!” posted one user named Summer B. Harris.  

“I miss Hitchcock’s donuts,” Matthew Maracic said. 

Already a butcher by trade when he founded Hitchcock’s, Alan said his dad harbored a special passion for the store’s meat department.  

Bob Hitchcock traveled around the country gathering different ideas from people leading the industry with its newest technology, often making him the first independent grocer to embrace the innovations. 

Alan Hitchcock said staying on top of cutting-edge technology was crucial for the small chain’s survival, allowing it to adapt faster and keep up with the ever-changing market. 

“He always amazed me just wanting to learn about new things that would enhance our business,” Alan Hitchcock said. “We were always looking for different things, but when it came to our meat department, the integrity and quality that was expected was never compromised.” 

At the company’s peak around 2008, Alan said Hitchcock’s was one of the largest customers of grocery supplier SuperValu in the state of Florida. That’s also when he said two companies, including one national chain, expressed interest in buying Hitchcock’s. 

The climax of success, compounded with competitive bids, made the timing right for Alan Hitchcock to sell to Minnesota-based Haug Enterprises, which insisted on keeping the Hitchcock’s name.  

Since then, customers said they started noticing a decline in the brand’s quality.  

Elizabeth Lucas-Young recently posted on Facebook, “When I went to Hitchcock’s 4 plus years ago the quality of everything had really gone downhill. I used to shop there all the time with my mom as a child and then the quality got bad.” 

Angela McGehe said, “[Hitchcock’s] has been nasty for a while and their meats are always rotten,” as another customer posted a picture of a snake moving across food products in the Hawthorne store. 

Alan Hitchcock agreed the market’s quality isn’t as high as it used to be. In 2019, Hitchcock’s was sold to the Alvarez family. He said he knew it’d been up for sale again since last year, when owner Carlos Alvarez died. 

Hitchcock’s employees told Mainstreet there’d been minimal communication from the company regarding who was buying their stores and if they’d keep their jobs. 

Alan Hitchcock said that while change is likely with new management, he’d be surprised if employees weren’t given opportunities to reapply for their positions. He said this week, Hitchcock’s started running a 30% off sale and will be doing another at 50% off. 

The only three stores liquidating their inventories, he said, are Williston, Alachua and Keystone Heights; three locations that received purchase offers from Winn-Dixie. The others will have their inventories purchased by their buyers and keep the shelves full. 

Although Alan Hitchcock spends most of his time now working in cow-calf operations, commercial real estate and operating event venues like Santa Fe River Ranch, he said he still stays in touch with the grocery business through the Alan and Cathy Hitchcock Field & Fork Food Pantry.  

Founded in 2015, the pantry aims to help curb food insecurity for members of the UF community by providing items like bread, nonperishable canned goods, frozen meat and seasonal produce from the Field & Fork Farm and Gardens on campus. 

Alan Hitchcock, also a UF alumnus, said challenging economic times have made it difficult to keep the pantry stocked, but recent partnerships with new businesses are getting the job done. He said he’ll continue to support the pantry and other charities throughout the area and maybe even reach out to the new stores replacing Hitchcock’s for pantry collaborations.

Alan Hitchcock said he’s glad that Hitchcock’s Markets communities will continue to have supermarkets in them, even if the businesses are chains. But he said local grocers still have a unique ability to connect to the community in ways that larger ones cannot, because of their size and structure. 

Even after Hitchcock’s Markets’ signs and stores are gone for good, Alan Hitchcock hopes a legacy of his family’s dedication to local communities remains.  

“I do hope that people will remember our commitment to provide them with quality food at reasonable prices in the small towns,” he said. “We loved our community so much; we tried to support them in every way we possibly could. That memory will stay.”