Five of the former Mars Super Markets stores that closed when the grocer went out of business July 31 will reopen Thursday under the Weis Markets banner.
Weis, a Pennsylvania-based retailer, announced in May it planned to buy five of Mars' 13 stores and more than double its footprint in Baltimore County. Mars announced that month it would close this summer and lay off hundreds of employees amid declining sales and intense competition.
Stores that have been converted to Weis are located in Essex, Arbutus, Carney and two in Dundalk. Weis said it has hired more than 500 former Mars workers.
"We have converted and reopened our stores in record time to reduce the inconvenience to the communities we serve," said Kurt Schertle, Weis Markets' chief operating officer, in an announcement Thursday.
The converted stores will offer a mix of local products and more than 3,000 Weis branded products.
Weis also said it will complete its planned purchase of 38 Food Lion stores in the mid-Atlantic in September, including six in the Baltimore region. That will bring to 25 the number of Weis stores in the Baltimore region.
This has been updated to accurately reflect the number of Weis stores in the Baltimore region.