How the Piggly Wiggly Came to Sister Bay

Before 1985, instead of a shopping center on top of the Sister Bay hill, visitors heading to and from the village passed by an old orchard. But a group of developers — Bob Hastings, Tom Nelson, Warren Gustafson, James Cuene and Allen Ross — saw a prime location for a new outdoor shopping center to serve Northern Door, and created what we now know as the Country Walk Shops. When they needed a grocery store as the anchor, the group reached out to grocers Tom and Dan Nesbitt. The Nesbitts owned two Piggly Wiggly stores, including one in Sturgeon Bay, and believed they were the right fit for the project. Though grateful to be approached, the Nesbitts were also unsure about expanding into such a small community.

“It was a scary process because this was a very small community, and tourism business was not what it is today,” Tom Nesbitt said. “It was very quiet up here in the winter months, so we had to take that into consideration when we were deciding on moving forward with the new store.”

The Nesbitts have deep roots in the grocery business. Tom’s father, Leo Nesbitt, owned a Bi-Low Grocery store in Oshkosh as well as meat markets in Plymouth and Sturgeon Bay. In 1956, his father opened the first Piggly

Wiggly in Door County on the corner of 6th and Jefferson in Sturgeon Bay. (Jim Nesbitt, Dan’s father, managed the Sturgeon Bay store until his retirement in 1976.)

The Nesbitts seemed the perfect fit for the location. It was a risky move with such a small year-round population, but Tom and Dan Nesbitt jumped into the project and never looked back. The Sister Bay Piggly Wiggly opened in April 1983.

The local community welcomed the new store with open arms, even if things started a bit slow, as Tom Nebitt recalled on opening day. “We had our

Celebrating the proud history of Door County!

Grand Opening, which are usually fairly big events, but there wasn’t much business. It was a little scary at first, but seven years later, we needed to add on additions.”

The first addition to the Piggly Wiggly happened in 1990. The original building was 8,900 square feet, and the first new addition added 3,500 square feet while creating the bakery-deli section. Another two additions also happened in the 1990s. A lobby with cart storage was added in 1994, and a truck dock was added in 1996. The store remained relatively unchanged until the big remodel in 2018. With summer tourism causing congestion, the remodel turned the 13,600 square foot store into nearly 27,000 square feet of expanded office, storage, and food and liquor department space. Finally, the aisles were widened to make shopping easier.

The Nesbitts didn’t want to cut the community off from their main grocery store for long months of renovation, so the Piggly Wiggly remained open.

In May 2023, a new parking lot was installed, completing just before Memorial Day weekend. It included beautiful new landscaping and changed the flow of parking and traffic to make it safer for shoppers walking in and out of the store.

History Days Schedule of Events

canal. This story of the people and the enterprise that briefly flourished there in the late 1800’s sheds some light on the early history of this locale.

SATURDAY, JUNE 24

Open Door Pride: Creative Hub

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Miller Art Museum M3

142 S. 3rd Avenue, Sturgeon Bay Stop by M3 during the Open Door

Pride event for the What’s My Pride? photo exhibit and selfie station, where you can add to the archive, as well as free crafts and family fun!

Season Opener 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM

11831 Hwy 42, Ellison Bay

Join us in celebrating the official opening of the LGHS museum buildings for the 2023 season on

Saturday, June 24 from 10:00 – 4:00 pm. Docents will be on site. Onsite Veterans Memorial/Circle of Honor and Heritage Walkway. Access to scenic overlook. Plenty of parking and seating available.

Pottawatomie Lighthouse Museum

Guided Tours

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Pottawatomie Lighthouse

Rock Island State Park

Join Friends of Rock Island State Park docents for a guided tour of the historic Pottawatomie lighthouse tower and keeper’s quarters.

Indigenous Stories

11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Heritage Village at Big Creek

2041 Michigan Street, Sturgeon Bay

Join tribal representatives and