New Grocery Outlet owner takes over Feb. 20

Brandon Criss, the new owner of Rainier Grocery Outlet, is no stranger to the ins and outs of operating a Grocery Outlet franchise. His education started in 2018 working with his parents who took ownership of a Springfield, Ore., store.

In 2019, the family expanded to a second store in Myrtle Creek, Ore., and Criss worked there full time, starting as a floor worker and, eventually, becoming store manager. In July 2025, he went into Grocery Outlet's Aspiring Operators Training Program with the goal of owning and managing his own location. This is when the Rainier opportunity presented itself.

"It's all about finding locations that feel like the right fit," said Criss. "Sometimes it's quick, like in my case. I was barely done with the program when Rainier became available and I applied for it. "It was a near lateral move in terms of community. Myrtle Creek is a small town - only a few thousand people with a few mills along the main road - so it was very similar. On a personal level, it was comfortable and, on a business level, I saw an opportunity for growth."

Criss has big plans for how he wants to run the store and ideas around product offerings and layout changes. "What's unique about Grocery Outlet is I can tailor the stores, vibe, and product for the community," he said. "You go to every Grocery Outlet, a lot of the products will be similar but highlights will be different. That's the part I like, especially with new initiatives that we're focusing on...[With] the treasure hunt, you could come in and find exciting items; [ones] either you've never seen or [ones] at [low] prices. That's the kind of stuff that drove me to really push to be selected for Rainier."

Criss addressed a common complaint around wait times at checkout, saying "I learned from Tom Hogan who owns multiple Grocery outlets...He did scheduling in a previous life for conventional grocery...He has a specific way he makes a schedule and it prioritizes lines; you don't have lines. Once I officially take over and I'm given complete control of the reins, there will be a restructuring of the schedule to make sure that there are enough cashiers based on sales trends that there are no lines".

Another key focus for Criss is freshness in terms of produce and meat. This will come by way of increased employee training to address visual presentation and dated items. "In Myrtle Creek, I took care of meat and I prided myself on having the shelves always full and having, on average, some of the lowest markdowns and throwaways in terms of sales volume," Criss said. "I don't allow dated products. If it's close - say it's like a week out - you mark it down. I want it to be a place [people] can trust."

Criss is also looking to gather community feedback. "On the 20th I'm going to search for the best spot to put out what I'll call the 'ask it basket,' [so] people can write down their ideas [and] place it in the basket. Then every morning, either me or another manager, will collect them and then we'll organize them into specific categories, from overall store ideas to department ideas to all that sorts of stuff".

Criss encourages shoppers to download the Grocery Outlet app and register their phone number for extra corporate savings and said special deals for Rainier will be communicated via the local Facebook page.

"The biggest thing that I want [people] to know is I know they've seen a lot of change in ownership since its inception in 2018," said Criss. "When the store changes hands, there's a lot that falls through. I can't run a store like that. If something's wrong, I need to know. I literally got into the business to feed people, to give back to the community, and to make people's lives easier."

Rainier's Grocery Outlet is located at 215 W. B Street. The store is open Monday through Sunday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.