A Tale of Two 61M Publix's: Stores 754 & 828

In this GTB Retail blog post, we will look at 2 Publix stores in the Tampa Bay Area that are the 61M model but have several differences. Let's start off with store 754 in the Citrus Park area of Tampa!

Publix #754

7835 Gunn Highway, Tampa, FL - The Shoppes of Citrus Park

Publix #754 opened on August 16, 2001 as the first 61M store built by Publix, and is located near the 1999-built Citrus Park Mall. The name "61M" comes from the 61,000 square feet of space followed by the letter M for model. This store model is also referred to as the second-generation Publix Superstore in my Store Models & Interiors page.

Distinctive features of the 61M's are separate entrances for the food and pharmacy departments, 2 combined exits, and a pharmacy drive-thru at most locations.

The 61M is also the first Publix store model to feature an elevator, which will be seen later in this post.

The right-side pharmacy entrance, complete with 2 automatic doors. This is a feature only seen in this and the first-generation 28M stores.

Before entering the store, I have some fun facts about Publix's 61M stores:

The only 61M to be built outside of Florida was store 786 in Newnan, Georgia. That location opened on February 20, 2002.

Publix #832 in Hialeah, Florida opened on March 22, 2003 as a regular Publix and was converted into their Spanish-oriented Sabor format on May 19, 2005. The store was converted back into a regular Publix in 2019.

Aisle 1 is home to baby products. The pharmacy and health/beauty sections to my left have a lower ceiling due to the presence of management offices and the cooking school. If you zoom in under the walk-in care sign, you can also see a set of stairs that lead to those areas.

Here is the elevator that takes you to the second floor at Publix #754. This is a Schindler 321A and was installed in January or February of 2001, making this one of the last 321A's to be installed by Schindler.

This image and the next two are the views of the store that you can get from the second floor, similar to the newer 48M and 55M stores.

This Publix has 10 total checkouts. Checkouts 2 to 9 are arranged similar to a Walmart with 2 checkouts in alternate directions, while checkouts 1 and 10 are in a single lane. This is another distinctive feature of the 61M stores.

The entire length of aisle 15 is home to produce and is a part of the grand aisle.

Signage for produce, along with the floral, bakery, and catering departments.

An example of a newer Sienna checkout lane light with an express sign, used from 2015 to 2021. The Evergreen version is similar, except that there are no rounded corners and the font is in DIN 1451. There is also a Sienna/Evergreen hybrid variant of this checkout sign which only uses the DIN 1451 font in the checkout number.

Since this is the last photo that I have of Publix #754, let's head to store 828 for part 2 of this post.

Publix #828

2875 University Parkway, Sarasota, FL - University Walk

Publix #828 opened on May 23, 2002, which as of writing, today is the store's 21st anniversary! This store is identical to #754 shown in our first part except for a different exterior. The Publix logo and text are white, although during the nighttime the color changes to green. I wonder if there are green lights behind the Publix sign.

This store replaced Publix #358 at 8450 Lockwood Ridge Road which opened on July 21, 1988, closed on May 22, 2002, and was a first-generation 40N at 45,000 square feet.

Looking at the front end. Aisles 1 to 7 are to the left, straight ahead is greeting cards, and a part of the customer service counter can be seen to the right.

This is also the second 61M store to feature a Publix Aprons Cooking School.

Checkout 11 and the customer service counter.

This Publix also has an elevator, but this store has a Schindler 330A unlike store 754 which has the older 321A model.

After exiting the elevator, we can see signage for the cooking school and a set of stairs that goes down to the first floor.

Similar to store 754, this and the next two images are views of the main store from above.

While I was on the second floor, I found one of four cooking class posters that Publix never bothered to remove! This featured chef Sandra Lee and referenced a now-former Food Network show that aired from 2003 to 2011 (a 15-season run, despite airing for 8 years)

This Publix also has a Starbucks which was added in the Sienna remodel in 2018. This store previously had the Bamboo interior with traces of Metallic Marketplace. A post on a similar 61M with that interior can be seen here.

Back at the first floor, the ceiling transitions as we prepare to go back into the grocery aisles.

Baby products are found in aisle 1. The pharmacy and health/beauty sections can be seen to the right.

A closer look at the pharmacy counter, which was updated in 2018 during the store's Bamboo to Sienna remodel.

Lunch meats and aisles 11 to 14 are visible.

Here is aisle 12, which is home to dry groceries, beer, and ice.

An aisle 12 sign in the Sienna design. This store also has self-checkouts which store 754 lacks.

The deli department in store 828. You can also see a skylight at the top which is a feature seen only in the older models of the 61M stores and is not seen in store 1306, the latest Publix to use the 61M design.

Aisle 14 is the last marked grocery aisle. Frozen foods can be found here in addition to aisle 13.

Unmarked aisle 15 is the store's grand aisle. The bakery, catering, wine, and a part of the meat department are found in this aisle.

Publix #828's catering section. Store 754 has this placed next to the deli.

Looking at the produce and deli departments from the grand aisle.

Similar to the entrances, there are also 2 sets of automatic doors. The exit doors shown here are dual exits with one set of doors to the left and another to the right.

As a bonus, let's look around at other parts of University Walk!

This plaza has a Publix liquor store, which was added in 2010 as Publix did not operate liquor stores in 2002.

Next to that is a former Hallmark store, which closed in late 2022 or early 2023.

And here is Panera Bread #6229, which opened in 2002 along with the rest of University Walk.

Panera Bread was founded in 1987 in St. Louis, Missouri. The locations in that area are known as the St. Louis Bread Company, which was the company's original name until 1997.