A Food Industry Service Heritage

 

The Nichols family embodies a 100-year heritage of food industry service. Back in 1916, Grandpa and Grandma Berryman opened a small grocery store in Spokane, Washington, providing groceries, fresh fruits, and vegetables to local families. The Nichols family, decendents of the Berrymans, moved south, acquiring pear orchards in the Foothill and Lone Pine area of east Medford, Oregon.

 

Growing up, both sets of Rick Nichols' grand parents were Rogue Valley orchardists. Son of the late Navy veteran and mill worker, Orville (Nick) Nichols, Rick fondly remembers working the family orchards and fruit stands with his grandpas, D.H. Nichols and Oscar Nordstrom, picking pears and pruning trees. Rick began his grocery career in 1973, bagging groceries at a local store. After 5 years, Rick earned his way into management, ultimately running several different stores in southern Oregon. In June of 1990, after 17 years of diligent work, Rick opened his first store, Rick’s Greatway Market, located in Eagle Point, Oregon. Rick has always felt that a grocery store is the hub of a community, a meeting place where people’s daily paths converge, where friends and acquaintances bump into each other and talk about their family, business, and current happenings as they shop for dinner ingredients. This is the culture that Rick endeavors to foster in each store that he opens.

 

In 2003, Rick and Tresa Nichols sold the Eagle Point Greatway Center, later purchasing Wimer Market and Hidden Valley Market.

 

Rick and Tresa's son, Travis, one of their three grown children, began working in the grocery business as a teenager. Throwing freight, stocking shelves, and mopping floors progressed into managing departments and later stores. The Nichols' heritage and industry expertise are extraordinary. Their discernment of local food needs, trending ingredients, and dietary preferences are remarkable. Hidden Valley Market is the culmination of 100 years worth of food industry service. The store provides Applegate Valley residents country convenience - A place where families shop local, buy fresh, and live well.