Tozier’s Family Market, a longtime grocery store in downtown Searsport, has closed indefinitely.
After rumors about the closure circulated on social media on Tuesday night, signs outside the store on Wednesday morning indicated that it was “Closed until further notice.”
It wasn’t immediately clear why the store had closed.
The owners of Tozier’s did not respond to an email seeking comment, and a clerk at their Brewer location declined to give their phone number.
Customers were still showing up at the store on Wednesday, unaware that the business was closed until they got to the door. Some of them were longtime shoppers at Tozier’s and expressed dismay about the change.
“I’m surprised,” said Marjorie Knutti, who has been shopping there for 30 years. “I’ve heard all sorts of rumors and I don’t know what is going on.”
Other than Tozier’s, the other big food markets in the area are all at least 20 minutes away by car, in Belfast or Bucksport.
BDN writer Charles Eichacker contributed reporting.