CEDAR CITY — When shopping at Lin’s Market in Cedar City, customers might remember the store director for her smile, her commitment to community service or it may be the fact she’s worked there for 22 years.
Industry news outlet Progressive Grocer receives over 1,000 nominations each year for its annual “Top Women in Grocery” awards, according to a press release. This year, Lin’s Market Cedar City Store Director Rochelle Mellor was awarded one of the more prestigious awards in the grocery industry.
Elizabeth Barnett, senior marketing specialist at Associated Foods, Inc., said Mellor strives to provide the best for Cedar City customers with her teamwork attitude.
“Rochelle’s commitment to working with her teams to provide the best shopping experience for her guests has received recognition within the company and the wider community,” Barnett said in the media release. “This commitment goes beyond the store.”
Under Mellor’s direction, Lin’s Cedar City received a “2023 Best in Iron County” award for providing exceptional customer service. Barnett said the store director is consistently finding ways to be involved in the community.
“Rochelle and her team have partnered with the university on several events,” she said. “Her relationship with Southern Utah University has allowed Lin’s and Southern Utah to magnify the store’s community efforts.”
During the previous football season, the store organized a food drive for the SUU Hope Pantry to address the challenges of food insecurity among Cedar City students.
Barnett said the goal of the initiative was to gather the weight of the SUU football team in food donations, with collection stations positioned inside the store during games.
“The outcome was remarkable, with Lin’s Market surpassing its goal by collecting 4,467 pounds of food,” Barnett said of the teamwork effort.
Mellor said the ability to give back to the community she lives in has kept her working for the same employer for over two decades.
“I feel very blessed to be a part of the Lin’s family,” Mellor said. “I love working for a company that places so much emphasis on giving back to the community. I have an amazing team that makes all this possible. We are a family and I’m grateful to have them at my side.”
Barnett told St. George News that Mellor started at the company in 2002 in the scanning department and has been store director at Lin’s Market for 12 years.
District Manager Steve Holm told St. George News he’s worked closely with Mellor for more than seven years and that she is always striving to support her team.
“Rochelle is very talented and we are so lucky to have her as part of the team,” Holm said. “Her dedication to the store and her guests is inspiring.”
The first Lin’s Market opened in 1966 on 100 West in Cedar City, owned and operated by Lin and Reva Orton.
“The original store was small but became very popular with the local people due to the store’s friendly customer service and the high quality of the meat department,” Lin’s Market website states.
Their sons opened St. George and Hurricane stores and the family business was passed to the second generation, J. Sterling Orton, Raymond H. Orton and Rodney K. Orton.
Lin’s Market in Cedar City moved into the current store on Main Street in 1994. In 1999, Associated Foods Stores, Inc. in Salt Lake City, purchased the family business.
Today, Lin’s Market operations include stores located in Cedar City, Hurricane, Price, Richfield, Santa Clara, St. George and Overton, Nevada.
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