It was a big week for North Buffalo, with the opening of Dash’s Market. All reports point towards the market as being a bigger sensation than anyone could have been expected.
With the opening of Dash’s, customers have a seamless shopping experience, with a plethora of conveniences all mapped out to create an extraordinary market destination.
“It’s a world-class grocery store in an already vibrant neighborhood,” said Delaware District council member Joel Feroleto. “The Dash family paid attention to every detail of the building and it is spectacular.”
I got a chance to talk to owner/operator Joe Dash, who said that he has been working around the clock, and is a bit overwhelmed with the reception from the community.
“The whole intent was to make the market the hub of North Buffalo for friends, family, and strangers who will one day become friends,” said Dash. “This is the congregation spot of Hertel Avenue. I tried to stay ‘close to the street’, to find out what people were looking for, and then I brought all of those elements together under one roof.”
One of the things that struck me most about Dash’s was the beautiful brick building that makes a statement and adds to the unique architectural chemistry of the street. “I wanted to build something iconic,” said Dash. “I wanted something that would look like it was built back in the day – in the 2os or 30s. It’s simple, classy, and beautiful. It’s more expensive, but I wanted to build something that would pay homage to my mother, father, grandmother, and grandfather. That’s four generations of selling groceries in Buffalo, just shy of 100 years. I didn’t have to spend all that money, but I did. Maybe I’m a little nuts, but who cares? I also didn’t go to the City for a nickel – I just said, ‘Let’s just build the store.'”
If you think that the outside of the building looks great, then you’re going to love the inside. “I wanted the interior to feel like someone had taken an old building and reused it,” Dash commented. “At first, I wanted the dining to be on the first floor, but we ended up putting the café on the second floor, and now I feel that it’s way better – it’s like a living area, where people can get a coffee, or a sandwich, dinner, or just hang out and talk. The second floor also has a community room (opening soon), and it’s where we put the mechanicals so that they wouldn’t be outside making noise for neighbors. Instead of putting our corporate offices on the second floor, I bought the bank next door for our corporate offices – the bank location is also used for parking for our store team. We now have 200 people working in this store – we hired 130 people… there were 70 people in the old store.”
Dash is beyond proud of the market buildout, and the way that it functions. He told me that he wanted to create something that was like “back in the day”. He remembers being able to shop in neighborhoods that had everything that you needed, including meats, cheese, produce… it was easy, and it was a social experience. That’s what he set out to recreate. He also mentioned that there is one particular design piece that he is especially fond of. He explained [laughing], “I ended up building the market around the old Park Lane Restaurant chandelier that I had stored in one of my buildings – my workers were always asking me, ‘What the heck are you going to do with that thing?’ I knew exactly what I was going to do with it.”
If you’re familiar with Joe Dash, then you know that he is committed to the community and his customers. He is known for being a good community supporter, and corporate citizen. But as much as he loves the community, he is in awe of the people that have supported him along the way. “It’s the customers that I owe my sincerest thanks,” Dash humbly reflected. “People are telling me that they are blown away by what we’ve done here, and I tell them that I am happy that we’re able to give so much back. After all of the support that we have been given throughout the years, we just wanted to create something that exceeded people’s expectations.”