The [Henderson] Daily Dispatch
OXFORD -- David Beck walked the floors of the new Oxford Wal-Mart Supercenter, pushing a cart of items that included a television set.
Beck was among the crowd of those who had gathered just inside the entrance to the store on a rainy Wednesday morning, ready to begin buying merchandise after the grand opening.
"It's going to be very convenient for us and we're planning to do a lot of shopping here,"
Beck said, a reference to his living slightly more than four miles from the store, which is off U.S. 15 near the Interstate 85 interchange.
"Everything is all nice and full," said Eleanor Oakley, who had made her way to an aisle stocked with items for Halloween.
"Yes," Oakley said when asked whether she believes the store is a feather in Oxford's cap.
"I like the way it looks on the outside," Emma Williams said as she began shopping. "The outside is very inviting. The colors are very warm."
Williams was referring to the earth-tone appearance of the building's exterior, part of a corporate-wide revamping and upgrading called "Project Impact."
The new Wal-Mart replaced a box-like red-white-and-blue store at Granville Corners at N.C. 96 and Industry Drive near I-85.
The store includes a full line of groceries, an expanded electronics section and a photo lab adjacent to one of the entrances. And the pharmacy is positioned close to the grocery section so customers can conveniently pick up their prescriptions and shop for food.
The store is designed to be energy efficient, with the most visible example being sections of the ceilings having been built to allow sunlight to flow through.
"You'll also notice in the main aisles there's no displays," store co-manager Dave Clark said. "It's nice and open so people can walk through. And it actually makes the store look bigger than it is."
Moments earlier, civic leaders and officials had gathered for the opening ceremony, which included the national anthem and the Wal-Mart cheer, the latter having been written by late Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton.
Randy Benjamin, a Wal-Mart market manager, praised the local leaders, saying, "It really shows what a wonderful partnership Wal-Mart has with the community of Oxford and Granville County."
Mayor Al Woodlief could not attend for personal reasons, so Mayor Pro Tem Howard Herring stood in for him.
