SIGN UP FOR OUR Auto Mercado, an upscale supermarket chain in Costa Rica, has opened its 17th grocery store. The new Auto Mercado is located one mile west of the Catholic church of San Francisco, a once bucolic municipality in Heredia that has been transformed into a sprawling suburb of the lovable city of San Jose.
As reported by Cristina Fallas Villalobos of business weekly El Financiero, the new supermarket has 1,700 square meters of commercial space, 120 parking spots and eight separate commercial spaces that will offer value-added leisure and convenience spaces to shoppers. Auto Mercado vice president Diego Alonso explained that:
“The opening of this second Auto Mercado in Heredia responds to an increase of our customers in this community and its surrounding neighborhoods, so it has become necessary to provide our services, quality and variety within walking distance of their homes”
This new Auto Mercado location generated new jobs for 150 employees, and 70 percent are residents of Heredia.
This new supermarket features an energy-efficient air conditioning system that self regulates its temperature and performance depending on the number of shoppers walking down the store aisles. Auto Mercado is also the first supermarket chain in Costa Rica to use glycol, a derivative of alcohol that does not add to global warming, for its refrigeration chambers.
The roof of this new store also has binoculars domes that maximize natural sunlight, which are complemented by a smart lighting control system that measures the amount of natural light and turns LED on or off, thereby contributing to energy savings.
According to company officials, there will be no more Auto Mercado openings this year; however, its Vindi convenience stores, which are displacing pulperías, hope to open new locations before 2015.
As previously reported by The Costa Rica Star, Auto Mercado is the most expensive supermarket chain in Costa Rica. It is also a favorite supermarket among North American expats who can find many products imported from the United States and Canada, such as very cheap beer.
