Four generations of Altmans have operated the Altman’s Grocery Barn & Grill in Godwin, North Carolina. According to family history, the original Altman’s was a one-room store located inside the family home. By the early 1930s, “my grandfather bought the store from an uncle and moved it into a new building across the street,” said Ruthie Jackson, one of two siblings, who, along with their spouses, now own the store.

When Jackson’s father died unexpectedly in 1992, Jackson, her sister, Laurie, and their husbands decided to buy it from their mother, who didn’t want to run the store by herself. “I began helping out here and there but didn’t join the staff full time until 2001,” Jackson said. She’s been working—and improving—the store ever since.

Beyond the Past

The original Altman’s Grocery Barn boasted gas, groceries and essentials, but all that changed with a complete rebuild in 2001. “A few years after we took over the business, we realized that we needed to make some wholesale changes if the store was going to last for future generations,” said Jackson.

The structure had been added onto for so many years, it proved difficult to transform into a more modern convenience store. The family decided tearing it down and starting from scratch made the most sense, so that’s what they did. “We knew we needed to add foodservice because that’s what our customers had requested, so the new building has a full-sized kitchen and a seating area to accommodate that focus,” she said.

The store reopened as Altman’s Grocery Barn & Grill to emphasize the foodservice aspect. The menu includes housemade chicken salad, fried chicken and daily lunch specials, such as fried catfish and shrimp with hushpuppies and country-style steak with mashed potatoes. In addition, the store sells Hunt Brothers Pizza, sandwiches and Hershey’s hand-dipped ice cream.

“We do a brisk business in grab-and-go biscuits for breakfast,” she said, adding that she’s thinking about adding a refrigerated grab-and-go case for prepackaged items in the near future. Altman’s has healthier items as well, including salads and a variety of vegetables, such as green beans, fried okra, butter beans and sweet corn. Several years ago, the store started a catering service as well.

Keeping with tradition, Altman’s offers gas, diesel and a full line of grocery items at competitive prices, such as bread, milk, eggs, flour, sugar, light bulbs and ice, as well as convenience store staples of soft drinks and snacks. “We also carry old-fashioned hoop cheese that we get from a Rocky Point, North Carolina, supplier. The cheese is a local delicacy and very popular with our customers,” Jackson said.

We’re still a gathering place for our customers, much like it was during my grandfather’s time.

The store also is an official USPS Village Post Office, sells state lottery tickets and North American money orders, offers copy and fax services and provides propane exchange and replacement. “We’re basically a full-service store,” Jackson said.

Family Connection

Altman’s plays up its family owned-and-operated past and present. “We treat our customers and employees like family,” said Jackson. The decor harkens back to its past, with old farm equipment and bottles serving as reminders of the area’s farming roots.

What hasn’t changed over the years is how the store brings the community together. “We’re still a gathering place for our customers, much like it was during my grandfather’s time,” Jackson said. However, much of that gathering together takes place online through the store’s Facebook page, which Jackson’s oldest son—the fifth generation to work for the store—monitors and posts.

Local groups use the store as a base for fundraisers, such as car washes, and Altman’s sponsors the local middle and high school bands, too. “Anytime we can offer community groups the chance to raise funds at our store, we do it,” she said. “It’s an easy way for us to give back to the community.”

The store also embraces new technology to keep customers coming back. For example, Altman’s recently started participating in the Chow Now app, which allows customers to place orders via their phone for pick up at the store. “It started out slow but is now picking up, with dinner as our busiest time, followed by breakfast,” Jackson said.

She advertises the app on their website and Facebook page and through door signage and postcards placed strategically around the store. “We’re trying to connect more with millennials, and Chow Now has been a great way to do that,” she said.

By building on its past, Altman’s hopes to stay relevant well into the future. “Our slogan is ‘Pleasing you, pleases us,’ and we strive to please our customers by engaging them in conversation and having our employees always smile and greet customers,” Jackson said. “It seems to be working because a large majority of our customers are regulars.”