For over four decades, the Brant Food Centre has proudly served the Brantford community, while being defined by its excellence in customer service, dedication to supporting local, and commitment to giving back.
Anthony DiPietro, who has continued his family’s legacy as owner of the store, discussed the beginnings and his father, Stelio DiPietro.
“My dad and his brothers owned grocery stores in Hamilton. They had four back in the 1960s, 1970s, and into the 1980s. At that time, we were probably one of the biggest independent [grocers] in Ontario. Then my dad got very sick with cancer…[which forced him to] essentially walk away from the business. [As a result], the stores in Hamilton had gone broke because he couldn’t run them. He was in and out of the hospital for four years,” explained DiPietro. “My dad would end up recovering and was ready to work. He answered a 1979 newspaper ad for a manager position in Brantford. When he became manager there, the family-owned grocery store was struggling. He quickly turned it around in six months and he would [eventually] buy the business from the original owners and officially opened the Brant Food Centre in Brantford in 1981.”
DiPietro pointed out that his father was quickly drawn to Brantford and its focus on community.
“He loved Brantford, he always said that this community was second to none. He loved it, he loved the community…he loved the people, and he loved growing the business here. He was also committed to helping the local farmers… anything he could do to support local, that’s what he did, and we still do that today,” he said. “We make it a priority to support the local economy, partnering with nearby farmers and contractors for everything possible. We source a high percentage of our produce locally—around 80 to 90 per cent during the peak season—and even all of our flowers come from local growers right here. It’s a special community; you get the convenience of a small city alongside these excellent local farmers on the outskirts.”
However, DiPietro himself would get his start in the family business when he was quite young, which is where he first learned the importance of giving back.
“My introduction to this business started very early. I was just five years old when my dad got me involved with our family’s stores in Hamilton, stocking shelves and helping out. Eventually, I started coming here to Brant Food. The truth is, the business has always been in my blood,” said the owner. “A value my father always instilled in me was the importance of giving back to the community [and] when the community gives to you, you’ve always got to give back—it’s what we do to this day. That commitment goes both ways. I’ve worked with people who have been with us for 40 years; we even have three or four employees who have been here longer than I have. We live that commitment through action, too. We donate a lot to food banks and local charities, giving them fresh bread two to three times a week.”
As the business continued to thrive in the 1980s and 1990s, DiPietro’s father led several expansions to better service the community.
“My dad kept expanding the store. We added to it on four different occasions, and I even tried to do another expansion, but it just didn’t happen. [With that being said,] we’re happy the way we are right now [and] the store is looking great…we’re trying to do the best we can for the community and giving fair prices as well as the best quality,” he said. “We have our bakery [where we] make 90 per cent of our bread in-house every day. Close to 95 percent of our pastries are made from scratch every day too. We have a salad bar—which is probably the biggest self-serve salad bar in Brantford. We have our meat department, which is close to 60 feet long—which is the biggest full-service meat counter in Brantford. Our deli is full-service too… and we have our hot plates with our full-service meals to go, like chicken parmesan on a bun and porkette on a bun.”
Nevertheless, it all comes down to providing excellent customer service.
“Our business has changed over time, but our commitment to quality customer service hasn’t. Our cashiers are key, as they know virtually every customer on a first-name basis from their daily interactions,” explained DiPietro. “Our customers are also highly knowledgeable. They often know what’s happening in the broader community or market—sometimes even better than we do—because they visit different stores and consistently engage with us. We always try to accommodate the customer, because their needs are the most important thing; without customers, we don’t have a business.”
While the Brant Food Centre has continued to be a mainstay in the community, the family experienced a devastating fire in the building in 2023.
“It was heartbreaking. That period was incredibly difficult. The first two to three months were particularly draining emotionally. I have to admit, it was very hard to keep busy, [and it was] hard to watch what had happened, and wait for the cleanup to be finished. I was initially given a timeline for reopening, but it ended up taking six times longer than expected—almost two years—to get the business up and running again,” recounted DiPietro. “Many people in the community thought we might never reopen, but that was never my intention. I always knew I would bring the business back, no matter the cost. The people of Brantford were wonderful and supportive during that time.”
After almost two years of rebuilding the store, it finally reopened in February 2025.
“The response to our reopening has been overwhelmingly positive. We took the opportunity to completely revamp the layout, creating a much better flow for customers. We laid out the store to emphasize the full-service experience that sets us apart,” said the owner. “Most of the industry has shifted to a self-serve, ‘grab and go’ model, which [eliminates] interaction. We didn’t want to change like that—we believe in communicating with our customers and seeing what they need. But customers know what they want, and they tell us where we can improve. The Brantford community has always been great to us, and we are thankful for their loyalty.”
DiPietro said it was a happy time for the employees as well, some of whom have been with the Brant Food Centre for over 40 years.
“The day of the reopening was a very happy moment for both me and my employees, especially after the long, excruciating 18 months it took. The closure was heartbreaking,” he said. “We aren’t a huge store, but we’re one that has been in this community for over 40 years [and] you simply don’t see that anymore. I talk to independent retailers often, and many of them are stepping away from the business. It’s sad to admit that is happening…[and] I believe that in the next ten to 15 years, you won’t see too many independent neighbourhood spots left. So, we’re working hard to make sure our store isn’t one of them.”
Despite the fire, DiPietro has only worked harder to make Brant Food Centre a symbol of local pride and maintaining the importance of community and loyalty.
“We’re just trying to grow the business but we’re not where we should be yet. We were closed for two years, and a lot of people still don’t even know that we’re open, even though we’ve been advertising. But we’re going to keep pushing and keep trying to grow the business,” he said. “We employ close to 75 people within the city. I think I lost maybe only ten per cent of my workforce during the two years we were closed, which is pretty good, [but] most of them came back. We treat our employees really well; we treat them like family because they are family. Some of them have been here longer than I have, and that tells you a lot—you don’t see that too often. It’s a very hard business, to be honest with you, but that’s all I know. I enjoy it. I enjoy talking to people, I enjoy working here. I’m here seven days a week, and I enjoy coming in every single day. I would only have enjoyed this more if my dad were here with us to see the business today.”
