News

Expansion Goals: For the last 5 years, our current facility has not been able to accommodate our growth. We need more retail area to provide a more comfortable and accessible shopping area, and more space for storage needs. There are certain areas of operations that have grown more than others including the deli and produce. So these 3 areas (retail, deli, and produce) will be a major focus in the new addition. Warehousing is also important to accommodate larger quantities of certain products, allowing us to purchase at a lower cost. The proposed addition would be attached to the south end of the current retail store, and then the existing building would be remodeled to fit with the new area. The main addition will be about 40'x98', with a 16x80 addition across the back of the existing structure, adding a total of about 5200 square feet.

We have plans to add a bakery and cafe as part of the remodel of the existing store. The bakery will be used to make our own baked goods to sell in the store and cafe. The cafe will seat up to 20 patrons, serving a variety of coffee, pastries, sandwiches, and soups.

We are partnering with the Finger Lakes Economic Development Center for property tax abatement. The Lyons National Bank will provide funding for the project. Special thanks to Dan Long Architects of Geneva for a great design. Heather Demoras Design Consultants (a great customer and local resident) have done an amazing job on the interior design. They have created an interior that will be locally themed to give shoppers a comfortable and unique experience. Most of the construction will be done by Martin's Construction of Penn Yan, along with other local sub-contractors. Construction will take approximately 3 months.

Check out architectural drawings of the construction:
Front View (.pdf)
Floor Plan (.pdf)
Revisions (.pdf)

Click here to see our progress!

Country Stores Give Shoppers a Breath of Fresh Air
Article Found in Life in the Finger Lakes Magazine

This 1,600-square-foot specialty food store, begun in the front room of the founders’ farmhouse, easily meets your family’s grocery needs but offers so much more. Since it began in 1983, Oak Hill Bulk Foods has earned a reputation for offering unique, high-quality food products at a great price. A comfortable country-store atmosphere coupled with friendly service helped to create a loyal local following and enthusiastic Finger Lakes visitors. “Even on winter weekends, we notice people from outside the county shopping in our store,” said owner Phil Riehl.

Riehl’s father-in-law, Amos Stoltzfus, opened Oak Hill shortly after he moved here with his family from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. As sales increased, room for inventory decreased, and boxes were soon stacked to the ceiling … in the family’s living room. Oak Hill expanded to its current site in 1990, and in 1999, Riehl and his wife, La Reta, bought the business.

“Our concept is simple,” said Riehl. “We buy in large quantities, usually 50-pound bags or cases, and then we repackage everything ourselves into various sizes. That way customers can choose the exact amount that meets their needs, and we avoid the cost of expensive packaging that most popular brands are using. We pass that savings on to our customers.”

Like the other establishments in this article, the trip to Oak Hill is a beautiful car ride through the Finger Lakes countryside. Before you head out, visit www.oakhillbulkfoods.com for an overview of all it offers; it will help you plan your shopping list. Categories include meat/cheese, baking, dried foods, “sweet stuff,” and “storage,” such as jars, lids, freezer containers and plastic bags. Make sure you check out their “Guide to Grains” page, a great resource for healthy eaters.

Best of all is a host of products that are locally made or produced. “We sell pancake mixes, flour and grain from The Birkett Mills in Penn Yan,” said Riehl. “Many of our jams and jellies are also produced locally. Our homemade bread, cookies and mouth-watering fruit pies are baked by area Mennonites. When it’s in season, we sell local produce grown in and around Yates County. We have a nice selection of cheeses from New York and Ohio. Our signature cheeses are aged New York cheddars, which we buy in 40-pound blocks and repackage for retail. Stop in and try a sample today!”

Article found in Life in the Finger Lakes Magazine
To read more on this, go to: http://www.lifeinthefingerlakes.com/readmore_article3.php