DeCicco & Sons cut the ribbon on its first Connecticut grocery store Wednesday, Sept. 9, filling a space at 21 Glenville St. that had sat empty since Stop & Shop closed in June 2023.

About 25 people lined up before the 7:30 a.m. opening, the Journal News reported. By late morning, the parking lot at Glen Plaza Shopping Center was full.

First Selectman Fred Camillo called it "probably the most anticipated business opening we've ever had in Greenwich," according to the Greenwich Sentinel. Camillo noted the DeCicco family's roots in Calabria, Italy, and said Greenwich has a large Calabrese community.

Three generations of DeCiccos greeted shoppers before the 10:30 a.m. ribbon-cutting: John Sr., who convinced his family to buy their first Bronx grocery in 1973; his son John Jr., the company's CEO; and John Jr.'s son John. The Greenwich location is the chain's 12th store and its first outside New York, where it operates across Westchester and Putnam counties.

"It was a long 18-month period, but finally it's come to an end … I'm happy to be in Greenwich," John Jr. said at the ceremony, according to the Sentinel.

Selectwoman Lauren Rabin, a 23-year Glenville resident, said she arrived when the doors opened. Rabin told the Sentinel the neighborhood had gone more than three years without a grocery store.

The store sits in the former Stop & Shop space at Glen Plaza. The Greenwich Planning and Zoning Commission approved plans in 2024, but permitting delays and a retaining wall issue pushed the timeline back, Patch reported.

DeCicco & Sons partnered with the Schweitzer Group, a retail design firm headquartered in South Tyrol, Italy, to fit out the Greenwich interior. It is the first DeCicco's store designed by the firm. John Jr. told the Journal News the collaboration brought a more European feel, with food preparation areas for meats, fish and baked goods made more visible to customers.

The store employs more than 100 people. About half transferred from other DeCicco's locations, according to partner Chris DeCicco.

Store manager Alyssa O'Grady started as a cashier at the Pelham location at age 16 and worked her way up through the bakery department. Meat department manager Francisco Luna came from the Eastchester store and has spent more than 20 years in the business.

A red Ferrari, white Maserati and green Alfa Romeo sat together in the parking area on opening day. Their colors matched the Italian flag.

Outside the store, the broader Glenville Shopping Plaza has changed. The former post office building now houses Green & Tonic, Luca's Pizzeria and Italian Kitchen, Longford's Ice Cream and Bluebird Taqueria, according to Greenwich Free Press.

One wrinkle: Connecticut law bars grocery stores from holding both a grocery-beer permit and an on-site consumption permit. Nine of DeCicco's 11 New York stores pour beer on tap, but the Greenwich location will sell cans and bottles only. The beer coolers were empty on opening day while the state permit was being finalized, CT Insider reported.

DeCicco & Sons plans to extend its school rebate program to Greenwich, allowing customers to support local schools through everyday purchases. The chain's next store, in Scarsdale, N.Y., was expected to open by late 2026, according to CT Insider.