L.A. at Large: 14th Big Saver Foods Store Opens in Long Beach

L.A. at Large: 14th Big Saver Foods Store Opens in Long Beach

      Date Submitted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 

By A.MATTHEWS

LONG BEACH, CA – The latest in the chain of  Big Saver Foods stores opened at a well attended morning reception at the store premises here on Nov 19. This is the second store in Long Beach and the 14th  in a chain that was launched by Uka Solanki and his family 32 years ago.

The store was formally thrown open for business by Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster and Vice Mayor Val Lerch, Council member for the 9th District, who cut the ribbon. Shoppers were lining up since the early hours to take advantage of the opening promotions. Guests at the reception included City Council members, Police, Fire Brigade, vendors, suppliers, bankers, friends and well wishers. It was an ethnically diverse group representing the true face of the community.

Both Foster and Lerch lauded the efforts of Uka Solanki and his contribution to the community. They said though redevelopment is very active in the 9th District, Big Saver was built without use of redevelopment funds.  Harish Solanki, President, Big Saver Foods, said the store was set up to help and improve the community and urged those present to form a partnership to benefit residents of the community.

The new store is completely full service, the only one of it's kind in the north-west section of the 9th District. It is above 45,000 sq. ft with 14 departments including produce, grocery, Liquor, beverages, hot bakery, kitchen, meat, dairy, deli and frozen section.

The stores feature foods and products that are not only popular with the Hispanic community, but also are not usually stocked by most American grocery stores. Many products – including beverages, cleaning detergents and other general products – are imported from Mexico and Central America. Specialty cuts of meat are also available.

In 1973 Uka Solanki didn't know much about running a business. Armed with a bachelor's degree in electronic engineering from Pacific State University and a bachelor's degree in Chemistry from India, he began his career in the food industry when he and a friend bought a drive-thru dairy store on Redondo Beach.

They later went on to purchase a grocery store in Torrance. The store was too large for the amateur businessmen to manage, so they sold it six months later. Solanki took his portion of the profits and took off on his own. He purchased Big Saver Foods, a small, independent grocery market located in Lincoln Heights in 1977,and the rest is history.

To this day the Lincoln Heights  store remains the anchor of the business .The chain largely targets the Hispanic market and has thrived on creating a "back home" experience for Hispanic Americans and their families. This is what helped Big Saver Foods grow from a single store operation to what it is today. Big Saver Foods stores are operating in Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties with stores in Lincoln Heights, Lawndale, El Serino, Rosemead, Norwalk, Bellflower, Long Beach, Santa Ana, Le Puente, Riverside. 

Uka Solanki is Chairman and is helped by son Harish who is the President and Project Manager. Uka's wife Nalini is the Vice President and also manages the Finance. Daughter Pratima is Director Operations of the Fresh Food Department while her sister Jyoti is Director Corporate Relations.    

The family run business has generated hundreds of loyal customers who enjoy the stores high quality meats, excellent selection of fresh produce and a wide array of hot and prepared foods.