Store to open in the former 7-Eleven spot

Grocery shopping won’t be quick and it won’t be easy for Longboat Key residents during the eight months that the Avenue of the Flowers Publix is closed for construction.

And that’s one reason why Reed Savidge plans to open Quik-n-Easy, a convenience store, at the site of the former 7-Eleven at 4032 Gulf of Mexico Drive.

Savidge, who owns the Longboat Ace Hardware store next-door, along with the Holmes Beach Ace Hardware, hopes to open by early November and offer basic convenience-store items such as beer, tobacco, coffee, fountain drinks and small grocery items.

“We’ll listen to what people would like to see there,” said Savidge, who noted that his wife, Ginny, has played a key role in developing the store.

For now, Savidge plans for the store to be open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.

The Longboat 7-Eleven closed in June 2010 at the end of a 15-year lease after 7-Eleven officials couldn’t reach an agreement on terms for a new lease with Savidge, who owns the building. At the time of the store’s closing, its manager, Tom Phillips, estimated that it served 500 customers daily.

Savidge said officials from other convenience-store chains expressed interest in the location, but he ultimately decided to open a store on his own during the summer.

“They just weren’t willing to move as fast as we could,” he said. “We wouldn’t let a space that is zoned to do just that go by the wayside.”

Although the Publix will re-open in December 2012, Savidge said he is in the business for the long haul. Currently, he is completing renovations on the store site, such as the installation of refrigeration, including a walk-in beer cave. He is also finishing the process of obtaining alcohol and tobacco licenses from the state.

Savidge said the store’s opening will fill a void on the island.

“I’m doing this because a lot of customers have asked about it,” he said.