From Deseret News archives:

Provo store drops alcohol, smokes

Daughter's D.A.R.E. program prompts owner to stop sales

Published: Saturday, Sept. 22, 2007 12:37 a.m. MDT
 |  E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + - 
PROVO — A 9-year-old girl was the straw that broke Camel's back.

And the Marlboro Man's. She did in Corona and Michelob, too.

Workers at Ream's Family Foods at 2250 N. University Parkway removed all the alcohol and tobacco from the grocery store's shelves Friday morning, largely because store owner Paul Ream's daughter Shyanne came home from her Payson elementary school's D.A.R.E. program and asked Daddy why he sold drugs in his Provo store.

That troubled Ream, who was further disturbed to learn that teenagers were sneaking alcohol out of the store by slipping beer bottles into cases of IBC root beer.

So, with a nod to his store's conservative neighbors, who already appreciate his decision to keep the location closed on Sundays, Ream cleared the shelves of Coors and Kool.

"It's risky and scary," he said, "but as an independent in the neighborhood we're in, it's not as risky as it could be."

The store doesn't rely on revenue from alcohol and cigarettes. It had dedicated 12 feet of space to its stock of beer and alcohol. The complete supply of cigarette packs and cartons fit into a cabinet the size of those found in most kitchens.

Story continues below
Total alcohol sales were $1,500 a month. A Ream's store in Springville, separately owned, makes $1,000 in beer sales every Sunday. The other Ream's location in Provo, on Center Street, is also owned separately and will continue to sell alcohol and tobacco.

"It's less than 1 percent of our business," Ream said of his store. "But that's those products. We don't know what else those customers buy when they're here. We hope they'll still buy their groceries here and their alcohol and tobacco somewhere else."

Ream's Family Foods is about three blocks west of Brigham Young University and draws large numbers of customers from student apartments and nearby residential neighborhoods filled with BYU professors and staff.

"About 10 o'clock at night, the store is clear full of students," Ream said.

Ream's decision pleased several customers.

"I think it's fantastic," Kristin Ward said. "It can't be good enough. There aren't words to describe it. The less available those things are, the better, and that's not just my religion. They're unhealthy."

Others weren't bothered by the move.

"It doesn't matter to me," said one woman who declined to give her name. "When I want something, I go to the state liquor store."

Outside the state liquor store in downtown Provo, Nanette Lassen felt the same.

"It's up to the store owner," she said. "If people still want to drink beer, they can go other places. I don't have any animosity toward (Ream's)."

Recent comments

There are really very very few comments saying that this guy...

huh | Sept. 23, 2007 at 2:25 p.m.

huh | 7:27 p.m. Sept. 22, 2007
"I don't think anyone is upset about...

Gripers..... | Sept. 23, 2007 at 2:25 a.m.

Paul Reams Jr. has always been a stand up guy. I used to work with...

JP | Sept. 23, 2007 at 1:09 a.m.

Image

Ream's Family Foods employee Hyrum Oaks carries a box of cigarettes Thursday in Provo. Other Ream's stores will continue to carry alcohol and tobacco.

previousnext

Latest comments

You Lie Mr.President, You do not tell the truth, unless it is to let...

Phoenix signs off on LDS temple

... dig ten feet down? The building would be 40 feet tall, but only stand 30...

House votes to extend tax on estates

Why not just make the estate tax 100%. Who cares about surviving family...

Nice job avoiding the historical fact that isolationism turned a recession...

Helping the poor versus compelling the poor. What is it? Do liberals...

Everybody hates PC. Remember when you could say anything offensive you wanted...

To Re: True Conservative at 11:00 am. Let me set you straight on a couple of...

What do cats do home alone?

What do cats do when their owners are away? sleep, rip up everything,...

Miles, A.K. to play Friday

Good news? Let's just hope Sloan doesn't bench players like Maynor and...

If he would play Fes and Koufos I would probably like him too. For sure.

Advertisements