BJ’s Wholesale Club on Saturday opened its newest New Jersey location at U.S. Highway 9 and Lanes Mill Road in Howell. The nearly 88,000 square-foot club offers significant savings on high-quality, leading brands of food and general merchandise. The opening of the club is also creating about 120 new full and part-time employment positions including 37 filled from local Howell residents.

The grand opening celebration on Friday/Saturday, included food and beverage sampling, balloon artists and face painters. Shoppers discovered the growing selection of organic and all-natural foods, kosher products, BJ’s exclusive, high-quality Wellsley Farms and Berkley Jensen brands, fresh bakery, full-service deli, propane, BJ’s Gas® and BJ’s Optical® Department.

“BJ’s is excited to open in Howell and provide area residents with a convenient location that satisfies all of their shopping needs,” said Scott Larnaitis, general manager of BJ’s Wholesale Club in Howell. “We look forward to establishing strong relationships within the community and supporting our Adopt-A-School and nonprofit partners, too.”

Community support is a core value at BJ’s, and with that in mind, the new club has partnered with Taunton Elementary School as part of BJ’s Adopt-A-School program. The school received a $1,000 donation and $1,500 in school supplies to enhance educational programs and curriculum objectives. BJ’s has also selected the following three organizations to receive support in the form of $2,500:

· Howell Municipal Alliance, which advises the Howell Township Government and Board of Education on current drug and alcohol abuse trends, and provides prevention education programs in each of the schools in the district. BJ’s funding will support the “Smart Lunch” Program that serves as a resource for students to complete missing assignments during the school day. The program is designed for students who demonstrate a chronic pattern of missed work.

· Police Athletic League (PAL) is a youth crime prevention program that uses educational, athletic and recreational activities to create trust and understanding between police officers and youth. BJ’s donation will help support the variety of valuable youth education programs that PAL runs.

· The FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties works to alleviate hunger and build food security in local communities. BJ’s contribution will be used to increase storage capacity to help safely store and distribute more nutritious foods to the people who need it most. The nonprofit will also participate in BJ’s Feeding Communities Program, which ensures that unsold food from BJ’s Clubs is safely processed and donated to local food banks. To date, BJ’s Clubs have contributed perishable food totaling more than 27 million pounds, which is the equivalent of nearly 23 million meals.

In addition, the Howell Emergency Food Pantry and the Family Food Relief of New Jersey located in Lakewood received a $500 BJ’s gift card to purchase needed products and supplies.

With a focus on serving individual consumers and families, BJ’s places greater emphasis on fulfilling consumer demands for value, selection, brands and convenience:

· Value and Savings – BJ’s accepts all manufacturers’ coupons – including the ones that come in the Sunday newspaper – providing more savings on top of BJ’s everyday low prices. BJ’s Members-only coupons are offered monthly as well.

Variety and Selection – With more than 7,500 products, BJ’s features the largest assortment of food and merchandise in the warehouse club industry. BJ’s offers products in every category as well as fresh produce, USDA Choice meats and an expanding number of all-natural and organic foods.
Quality and Brands – BJ’s provides high-quality products and top selling national brands including two exclusive product lines, Wellsley Farms and Berkley Jensen, which are all backed by BJ’s 100% money-back guarantee.
The Most Payment Options – For added convenience, BJ’s offers the most payment options of any wholesale club. In addition to cash, checks and debit cards, Members can use their Visa, BJ’s Visa®, MasterCard, American Express or Discover/NOVUS credit cards, Apple Pay and EBT to make purchases.

Inner Circle® and Business Memberships cost $50 a year. BJ’s recently unveiled its new My BJ’s Perks™ Program that greatly enhances Member benefits. Under this program, BJ’s Perks™ Rewards® Membership is available for $100 a year; enabling Members to earn two percent back on most BJ’s purchases. The BJ’s Perk Elite™ MasterCard® credit card has a $100 membership fee and Members earn 5% back on most purchases in and outside of BJ’s. The BJ’s Perks Plus™ MasterCard® credit card has a $50 membership fee and earns Members 3% back on most purchases in and outside BJ’s. Both credit cards also provide:

· Ten cents off per gallon of BJ’s Gas® every day

· Earnings of 2% back on eating out and non-BJ’s gas purchases

· Earnings of 1% back on purchases made everywhere else MasterCard is accepted

· Bonus earnings of up to $50 after first use of the card outside of BJ’s

· Membership Renewal savings up to $25 annually through BJ’s Easy Renewal program

The Howell Club is open Monday through Friday 9 a.m. – 9 p.m., Saturday, 9 a.m. – 10 p.m. and Sunday, 9 a.m. – 8 p.m.

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