Blount opens new soup store in Fall River industrial park

FALL RIVER – Blount Soups in big bags are back.

The Blount Company Soup Store opened its doors Saturday at 100 Graham Road, next to the production facility at Blount Fine Foods.

“We haven’t put up a sign or an awning yet,” said Todd Blount, company president. “But there were people waiting when we opened the door.

“That got us started.”

Blount moved to the city in 2004 and has become one of the biggest employers with more than 700 people working at the plant at 630 Currant Road.

It has been growing steadily since, adding 50,000 square feet to its production facility in 2015. It will hold an open house in its two-story office addition later this month.

The company makes soup and prepared food, like macaroni and cheese or mashed potatoes, for sale to restaurants and grocery stores. The food can be purchased in frozen family-sized bags, one pint containers or single serve containers.

What doesn’t get sold at wholesale goes into the company store.

There are freezers on two walls at the store and a large chest freezer in the center of the store selling clearance items.

Large bags of clam chowder, lobster bisque, vegetable soup, chili or chicken noodle are among the dozens of meals offered.

All of it was offered in the Blount Clam Shack that was on Bedford Street.

“The clam shack was nice, but it wasn’t something we could sustain,” Blount said. “You need to offer more than just lunch for a food preparation business to be profitable.”

The Bedford Street store closed on Jan. 26 and the business moved north.

The deals are surprising. A bag of turkey chili or chicken tortilla soup sells for about $12. The sizes of the bags vary, but they appear to be at least a half dozen servings.

“This summer, we would like to have Fall River soup sales,” Blount said. “We’ll do that monthly.

“Once we have a few months under our belts we’ll do those.”

The store will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

More information is available at the company’s Facebook page, BlountSoupStore.

Email Kevin P. O’Connor at koconnor@heraldnews.com.