BANGOR, Maine — Get ready, Bangor, because a new "Maine adventure" is opening next month.
Renys announced in November it had plans to open a new location in Bangor, where the Christmas Tree Shops was located on Springer Drive, just off Interstate 95.
"We are excited to add another Renys location to our group of stores. We have been wanting to expand in the Bangor region and are happy to have found a wonderful location," John Reny, president of R.H. Reny, said in a news release shortly before Thanksgiving.
The 31,000-square-foot space was expected to open in early 2024, but the company has since revealed its official opening date.
Tucked under the comment section of a Facebook post Renys shared to promote a job fair for the Queen City site was a question about a start date. The company answered: April 4.
It didn't take long for the buzz to circulate.
A job fair was held Feb. 29 at the new location.
The company has been in business in Maine for nearly 75 years, having opened its first store in Damariscotta in 1949. The business is now led by the third generation of the Renys family, and it employs about 500 people statewide, according to its website.
Reny told NEWS CENTER Maine in November that the company aims to maintain a strong roster of employees at each location to assist customers and keep shelves stocked and organized.
"It makes me very proud of the organization," Reny said when asked about the new location and continued growth.
"People love it here," Reny said, adding, "We live here. We know what you need, and we need it too."
It's not lost on this Mainer that the new location is opening up just days before thousands of people, local and from away, are expected to swarm to northern Maine to view the total solar eclipse. The path of totality crosses over the state, from Jackman to Houlton, but a partial eclipse will be visible outside the path for many other locations in the Pine Tree State.