New family-owned grocery store coming to Dryden

A new grocery store is coming to the Dryden area. Pine Ridge Grocery, a grocery store based in Bainbridge, New York, is expanding to a second store in the village of Dryden this summer.

The grocery store will be located on Enterprise Drive, which is off of Route 38, according to Pine Ridge Grocery owner Mike Kauffman. The location that Kauffman chose for his grocery store is a former Family Dollar.

Mike has co-owned the Bainbridge store with his wife, Sarah Kauffman, since January 2021.

“I drove through Dryden and thought, ‘Man, this is the place for it,’” Mike said. “It all came together. The building and location seemed perfect for us.”

Mike noted that the goal is to open the store at the beginning of June but added that he and Sarah have to go through “many variables” in the process of purchasing the property and undergoing reviews from the village’s Planning Board and Board of Trustees.

“[The village boards] are excited and happy to have the business coming to Dryden,” he said.

Mike mentioned that Pine Ridge Grocery doesn’t “directly compete” with traditional grocery stores.

“We’re a lot smaller, and we have a lot of specialty items,” he said. “We compete in terms of milk, produce and fresh meat. Knowing there’s not a lot of competition [in the area] makes it viable for us.”

The store offers a wide selection of organic and specialty foods. It includes a variety of candies, spices, baking products and more. Mike said the deli in the store “accounts for 30-40%” of total sales.

Mike noted that the Bainbridge store started selling fresh produce and meat more recently and regularly sells Amish-based home décor, craft items and toys.

“We have a lot of hard-to-find stuff and stuff you won’t find in your typical grocery stores,” he added. “A customer a few years ago said that our candy wall is life-changing. We’re pretty proud of our sandwiches and subs, which customers can’t wait to have [in Dryden].”

Pine Ridge Grocery first opened its doors in February 1996 by owners Steve and Rhoda Kauffman. Mike noted there is no relation between his family and Steve and Rhoda’s.

Pine Ridge Grocery’s format harkens back to Amish Mennonite communities in Ohio, with some of the first stores coming from that area.

After Steve and Rhoda ran the store for four years, they sold it to their friends, Jim and Brenda Walters, in 1999. Mike’s parents, Michael and Lydianne Kauffman, bought the store in January 2006.

“It was a family venture when we started,” Mike said. “It was fairly small.”

Mike noted that his parents grew up as Mennonites, which gives the stores an Amish-inspired background.

Mike was 17 when his parents bought Pine Ridge Grocery. When his parents moved out of the state in 2014, Mike and his brother, Josh, ran it “for a number of years.”

“I took on more of the roles of managing and operating over the years,” Mike said. “When my parents decided to move, that put me fully in charge of operations of the business.”

His parents still owned the store despite being out of state. After his brother left the business, it was “kind of a natural step” for Mike and Sarah to purchase the store.

During his time with Pine Ridge Grocery, Mike dreamed of expanding to a second store. Prior to considering Dryden as another location for the grocery store, he looked into the Binghamton area.

“It was an area I was a little more familiar with, but it just seemed like we could never get traction for it,” Mike said.

Mike noted the store is a “great fit” for the Dryden area, adding it could attract potential customers from Ithaca.

Pine Ridge Grocery’s customers include weekly and monthly visitors as well as those who “supplement their regular grocery shopping with something different,” Mike said.

“We’ve had a ton of positive feedback,” he said. “People are really excited about it.”

Mike said that a quite a few Pine Ridge Grocery customers come from Dryden and its surrounding areas.

Mike noted he is “excited to bring” Pine Ridge Grocery to Dryden.

“We’re looking forward to bringing all of the great things we offer in Bainbridge to another community,” he said.

Dryden Dispatch appears every Wednesday in Tompkins Weekly. Send story ideas to editorial@vizellamedia.com.

In brief:

Dryden Central School District’s proposed project gets community approval

The Dryden Central School District’s (DCSD) proposed $12 million Capital Improvement Project received approval from community members during the voting process April 5.

The Dryden community voted 263 in favor to 63 against.

The main focus of DCSD’s new capital improvement project will be on upgrades for Dryden Elementary School, including the cafeteria and kitchen, the nurse’s suite, corridors and a new playground for the preschool program.

Story for Dryden Story Walk updated for spring season

The Story Walk at the Jim Schug Trail in the village of Dryden has been updated with a new story for the spring season.

The new story, “The Tiny Seed” by Eric Carle, is a story about “the life cycle of a flower in terms of the adventures of a tiny seed,” according to a description of the book.

The beginning of the Story Walk at the Jim Schug Trail can be accessed adjacent to the Dryden Agway hardware store, which is at 59 W. Main St. in the village.