About Scotts Valley Market

 

January 1946, marked the beginning of the Clements family venture as a Central Coast Grocer. Lester Clements opened his first grocery store in Freedom, California.

 

Rich in agricultural diversity and natural beauty, the Central Coast and Salinas Valley are righfully referred to as 'America's Salad Bowl', and provided the perfect resource for a grocer who wanted to supply the best produce possible.

 

By 1955 Mr. Clements began looking for a bigger and better location. He found one not too far away in Salinas, California and called it Ron’s Market, naming it after his son. The entire family worked there over the next twenty five years. Lester and Ron stocked the shelves while their wives Edith and Marlo ran the store’s front end operations and managed to run a smooth home front!

 

As for Ron and Marlo’s two children, well they practically grew up in the back room of the store, sorting soda bottles and soon advanced to other duties as they were able between school and sports activities.

 

“We’d skateboard to the store after school and Grandpa would make us grilled cheese sandwiches. After our snack we would stand on milk crates to bag groceries!”

 

The young Clements also carried groceries for customers, not just to their cars, but occasionally all the way home!

 

Despite its loved place in the community, Ron Clements Sr. began to realize that yet another move was necessary and the elder Lester Clements came to realize it was time to enjoy life and slow down a bit.

 

The patriarch, Grandpa Lester Clements, who was 87 years old, continued to deliver produce from Salinas a few days a week until his passing. His wife, Edith sat on the seat right beside him “just going along for the ride”. Afterwards, they took time to have lunch and visit with employees, offering advice and sharing ideas at the table.

A new century came, Ron and Marlo’s children grew and moved into positions of greater responsibility, enabling their parents to have a little more time for leisure. Not to worry though, they still pop in regularly to oversee daily operations are running smoothly and that “service is carried out” the Grandpa Lester way!!

 

While family members still work closely in the business today, the growth of the market has meant an increased reliance on the employees. “It takes more than family, the staff is equally important. I don’t think we’d be here without them. It’s the people we work with that are the reason we are successful.”
But that doesn’t mean the family won’t continue to be an important part of the business. In a few years you may very well see a fourth generation of the Clements legacy! While there was and has been a staunch work ethic handed down throughout the generations, there has always been room for outside endeavors and many civic commitments. The list of community involvement is long!