News

Jan 04, 2024

Market Basket columnist Mary Shown bids farewell

It's a day I didn't want to come. Working for my hometown paper and covering the

It's a day I didn't want to come. Working for my hometown paper and covering the local food and shopping scene was, for a lack of better term, the absolute coolest job.

In my four years as the South Bend Tribune Market Basket columnist, a lot has happened. Sears closed, big box stores clawed their way to stay relevant by offering more diverse shopping options, local entrepreneurs breathed new life into downtown spaces, new pop-up restaurant concepts allowed for more diverse eating options to take hold, a global pandemic turned both industries on its head, and a Trader Joe's finally opened near Eddy Street. That also doesn't include the hundreds of openings, closings and everything in between that also have occurred.

But a lot has also happened for me personally ― I got engaged, married, purchased our first home, and we are now expecting our first child this winter. In a way, I grew up with Market Basket, and it's something I'll forever be grateful for.

But the time is here. Friday will be my last day as the Market Basket columnist with the South Bend Tribune.

I'll be around and active in the community, it will just be in a different capacity now.

What does that mean for the future of the column? I'm not quite sure but, in the meantime, Ed Semmler a longtime editor and reporter, and one of my closest colleagues, will serve as the interim reporter. You can email him questions and story ideas at [email protected] to continue to stay up to date for the latest retail and restaurant news.

I, like many of you, deeply care about this column and the community it's generated in its more than 20-year existence, but it is simply my time to step away.

A sincere and heartfelt thanks to all of the business owners who trusted me with their stories these past four years and to you, the readers, the true force behind what will always empower this column.

Contact Mary Shown at 574-235-6244 and [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @maryshownSBT and @marketbasketSBT.