Food Lion — Local services in Morganton

To whom it may concern,

I’m writing to express my concern regarding an experience I had at the Food Lion location on Union Street in Morganton, NC, which left me feeling uncomfortable and disappointed.

During several visits, I’ve observed the store manager, Ryan, engaging in behavior that could be perceived as prejudiced or overly judgmental. On more than one occasion, I noticed him following certain customers through the store under the pretense of browsing—once holding a box of plastic spoons while standing in the frozen department aisle. As someone who is observant and professional myself, it’s not difficult to recognize when someone is monitoring customers in a way that feels targeted and inappropriate. As a manager myself, I always treat everyone as the most important person whenever I encounter them no matter what their job position is and that is the way it should be as Leaders.

What’s even more concerning is that this behavior that Ryan is displaying, doesn’t appear to be applied equally. From my perspective, it seems to disproportionately affect certain groups of people, which is troubling and disheartening in today’s society. I want to be clear that this is not based on appearance, as I am always well-dressed and I am also a manager with a large, nationally recognized company. I earn a very respectable salary and expect to be treated with the same dignity and respect I offer others—regardless of background. The manager there is definitely not the type of manager that is useful to a company as big as Food Lion.

In addition, I’ve noticed that Ryan never greets customers or interacts positively with staff. Instead, his demeanor comes off as cold and dismissive, and he appears to manage through intimidation rather than leadership. This not only impacts the customer experience but likely affects employee morale as well.

Morganton is fortunate to have several grocery store options, and I typically choose to shop where I feel respected and welcomed. Unfortunately, this particular Food Lion has made me reconsider my loyalty to the brand entirely. I’m eagerly awaiting the reopening of Ingles and will be frequenting other nearby Food Lion locations or Walmart in the meantime.

I sincerely hope that this feedback is taken seriously, and that steps are taken to ensure store management receives proper training in customer service and public relations. All customers deserve to feel valued, safe, and respected—regardless of who they are.

Thank you for taking the time to listen. Everyone, please visit another store besides this one....

Very unfriendly employees. First time I went there I had a full buggy and there was only one register open so I went to self checkout because half their store is self checkout. As soon as I went up there one of the employees was like oh you need to watch her and then I was surrounded by two separate employees and the CSM. The second time I had my children with me and my husband. There was a group of girls standing at the counter not ringing anyone up just talking so I went to self checkout. I had MAYBE 10 items and one of the girls talked so loud about us needing to be watched and even called over a manager to watch us and the manager stood behind me the whole time. I’ve only been to the store twice and I refuse to go back. I am a store manager and I would not treat anyone the way I was treated at this particular food lion. I wouldn’t recommend going here. I would go to the one in Valdese. They’re...

The service of this particular Food Lion is declining rapidly. The worst thing they did for this place was add the self checkout. Sure it’s good if you just need a couple items but they only have 1 or 2 other lines open for everyone else. People with WIC can’t do self checkout and a lot of other people simply prefer not to do it themselves. Waiting in long lines with a hungry 4 year old just to be told I have to go to a different line but turn around to see that same cashier taking other people while I’m still waiting in yet another long line is not the move. Food Lion, do better. Will definitely be going to a different location the next time I need to get stuff on WIC. Only go here if you have an extra 20 minutes to waste or if you are able to do...