The owner of A1 Quick Shops has purchased a former beauty salon at 1225 N. New St. in Bethlehem with plans to transform it into his 21st neighborhood grocery store in the Lehigh Valley.
The renovation plans include removing interior walls, installing a commercial aluminum glass door to replace the residential-style entrance, updating the heating and cooling system, and adding commercial vinyl flooring and new shelving.
Construction is expected to begin in early November, with a targeted opening before the end of the year.
The new store will offer essential grocery and household items, beverages, tobacco products, coffee, and Pennsylvania Lottery tickets, though it will not sell alcohol.
“I hold all my stores to a high standard,” A1 Quick Stops owner Iffy Ansari said. “They are always clean, well-lit, and fully updated. They may not be Wawa, but they’re decent and respectable stores. Everything inside is brand new.”
Ansari discovered the Lehigh Valley during a family trip to Dorney Park in 2005 and purchased his first business that same year on West Turner St. in Allentown. Since then, his business portfolio has grown to include convenience stores, a wholesale business, and a laundromat.
Jeff Barber of the Allentown-based Lehigh Financial Group LLC arranged financing for the Bethlehem building. Chris Raad of Harvey Z. Raad Realtors served as the listing agent, with VAST Abstract of Bethlehem handling the closing.
For the renovation work, Ansari will collaborate with local contractors for electrical, plumbing, and finishing touches, though he often handles much of the building and renovation himself.
Updates on the renovation and opening of the new Bethlehem store will be posted on A1 Quick Shops’ social media accounts.
Generative AI was used to organize information for this story, based on data provided by Lehigh Financial Group LLC. It was reviewed and edited by lehighvalleylive.com staff.
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