Blue Goose Market in St. Charles will close its doors Sunday after more than 90 years in business

After being in business for more than 90 years, Blue Goose Market in St. Charles will close its doors Sunday.

But Blue Goose Market President and CEO Paul Lencioni is thinking about it more like a transition.

“This is the end of an era on one level,” he said. “But it is a transition for St. Charles. St. Charles is bigger than what any of us contribute. That’s one of the things I love about what I do. We live in this awesome place. And we all make our best contribution. We’re at a time where the Blue Goose wasn’t making the best contribution possible to the community.”

Lencioni lives in St. Charles and was elected to the St. Charles City Council last year. In 1928, Annunciata “Nancy” Lencioni – his great-grandmother – opened the Blue Goose Fruit Market in what had been Gartner’s Bakery, 201 W. Main St. The store moved to its current location at 300 S. Second St. in downtown St. Charles in 2008.

His grandfather headed up the store for almost 50 years.

“He was just trying to make something that was great for St. Charles,” Lencioni said. “It was my grandfather that made the Blue Goose into the community fixture that we all think of. I’m doing my best to make sure – just like my grandfather did – that what I do in place of that serves St. Charles as well as we’ve always intended. Every generation has its responsibility to leave the world a better place and that is what I’m trying to do.”

Lencioni announced last month that the store is closing. He said a number of factors are contributing to the store’s closing, including the pandemic and supply chain issues. And like other businesses across the nation, Blue Goose Market is experiencing an employee shortage.

“When you’re small, you just are what you are,” Lencioni said. “I’m sure things are going to be great in the supermarket industry after everything fixes itself. But you don’t have any safety net when you’re small.”

Since he announced Blue Goose was closing, the store has been offering price cuts, which have greatly depleted the store’s inventory. Right now, everything in the store is 30% to 50% off.

“There is significantly less inventory,” Lencioni said. “There’s just less food on the shelves of the Blue Goose right now.”

As far as what will replace the Blue Goose, Lencioni said he has been actively working to “find somebody to bring into town that’s going to do a good job, that understands what it takes to be a part of St. Charles and to be successful.”

“I’m just looking for the right ingredient to add that is going to solidify this next era in St. Charles,” he said.