Frequently Asked Questions

We know our customers occasionally have questions about our products and services. We are here to assist you in any way we can.

What is Sweetbay’s return/refund policy?
Sweetbay Supermarket strives to ensure our customers are 100% satisfied with their purchase. If for some reason you are not happy with an item, please return it for a full refund.* Sweetbay will always attempt to refund an item in the manner by which it was purchased. A receipt is not always necessary when returning an item; however, Sweetbay reserves the right to request a receipt. Sweetbay reserves the right to credit refunds to a Sweetbay Gift Card. Refunds that exceed $9.99 may require additional information from the consumer as well as management approval (i.e. name, address and phone number). Management approval will be required on refunds that exceed $4.99 when both the product and receipt are not available.

When is Sweetbay going to put a store in my area?
We continuously perform market analysis and monitor customer feedback to identify opportunities for new store sites. If you have a suggestion for a store location, or want to inquire about the status of a store under construction in your area, please contact our Customer Information Center.

How can I purchase a Sweetbay Gift Card?
Sweetbay Gift Cards can be purchased at any Sweetbay store. Cash, Check, PIN Debit, Visa, Mastercard, and Discover are accepted at these locations. For additional information visit our Sweetbay Gift Card page.

Does Sweetbay provide a discount for bulk gift card purchases?
Yes, Sweetbay offers discounts on bulk gift card orders.

• 1% for $1000
• 2% for $2000
• 3% for $3000
• 4% for $4000
• 5% for $5000

How can I get a job at Sweetbay?
Sweetbay offers equal opportunity in employment to all associates and applicants for employment. We cultivate a work environment that promotes growth, recognizes and appreciates differences, and inspires associates to create a valued experience for employees and customers alike.

Please review the Our Company/Careers section of our website to explore positions available in Retail, Corporate and Distribution.

Applications are available at the Service Center in any Sweetbay store. We encourage you to stop by and fill one out!

If you have questions about available positions at our stores, feel free to speak with the Store Manager or Associate Relations Manager.

To apply for positions open at our corporate office and distribution centers, send your application and/or resume to:

Employment
Sweetbay Corporate Headquarters
3801 Sugar Palm Drive
Tampa FL 33619

Do you offer a reward card?
No. At Sweetbay, we strive to offer ALL of our customers low prices that stay low, day in and day out. We diligently work with our suppliers to obtain a wide variety of high quality products that support our Everyday Low Price program. Reward cards and double coupons are very expensive programs, usually paid for by charging higher prices on the items throughout the store that are not on special. We don’t think it’s fair to ask customers to choose between having a card or paying higher overall grocery prices.

At Sweetbay, we believe everyone from the occasional shopper to our most loyal customer deserves to get the same great value. So while many retailers expect their customers to carry loyalty cards, our commitment is to offer ALL of our customers consistently low prices, as well as great product quality, variety and customer service.

We also respect your right to privacy and your right NOT to have data on your personal shopping habits collected for business or promotional purposes. We don’t believe you should have to forfeit your privacy to receive a few special prices on a limited number of items.

Who manufactures the Hannaford/Sweetbay Brand products, and how do you keep the prices lower than national brand?
At Sweetbay, our goal is to provide our customers with high-quality products at consistently low prices. We work with suppliers to identify the products that meet our rigid standards and put the Hannaford/Sweetbay label on them. These products usually target a national brand item, with little or no difference in ingredients. Any variation in the ingredients will not negatively impact quality or taste.

The companies that develop national brand products invest money in advertising and research to develop their products. These costs ultimately get passed on to the consumers. Because our private label product does not have the research and advertising overhead, we can sell the product for less.

If I’m dissatisfied with a Hannaford/Sweetbay Brand product, can I return it to the store?
Yes. We set very high standards of quality for our Hannaford/Sweetbay Brand products and your feedback is valuable to us. Every Hannaford/Sweetbay Brand product comes with a double-your-money-back quality guarantee. We also offer this same guarantee on all meat, deli, bakery, seafood and produce items. If you are not satisfied with the quality, all you have to do is return the item and its original packaging to the store nearest you.

What do I do if I cannot find a desired product in my local Sweetbay store?
You can speak directly with an associate at your local store, or call the Customer Information Center Hotline at 1-800-213-9040. We are always happy to do the research and determine if the product is available for the store to order, if not, we will find out if we can acquire the product elsewhere for you.

Why are items sometimes discontinued?
There are several reasons why a product may no longer be carried. The most common factors are: 1) products that don’t sell well are replaced by items that better meet customer demand, or 2) manufacturers updating their product lines, making a product unavailable.

We strive to offer a variety of products that fulfill the needs of every community we serve. Please be assured that we continuously monitor consumer response to new and discontinued items. Your input is a valuable part of this process.

How can I determine the shelf life of the item I’ve purchased?
Our favorite website is: http://www.fmi.org/consumer/foodkeeper/. You can type in the name of any product in the search field and find out how long you can store the item in your pantry, refrigerator, or freezer. You can also find important information about safe food handling.

What’s the difference between the sell by date and the use by date?
A sell by date indicates the last day a product can be sold and still provide a reasonable period of normal home storage and consumption. A use by date is intended to show how long a product will retain optimum quality before consumption.

How long can I store my canned goods?
In canned foods, preservatives are used to maintain quality. Any preservatives in the product must be listed on the label. The canning process keeps it safe. If a product is correctly processed, it should remain safe until opened or the seal is broken. However, long storage is not recommended. For high quality (versus safety), the broadest guideline given by the USDA is to use high-acid canned food (fruits, tomatoes and pickled products) in 18 to 24 months, and low-acid (meats and vegetables) in two to five years.

The system for coding can differ from one manufacturer to the next. Most companies offer a toll-free consumer information number on the label. We recommend that you call the number provided if you have questions about the code and/or the shelf life of a particular product.

Can you supply me with a list of products you sell that will accommodate my specific diet needs or restrictions?
Because we carry such a wide variety of private and national brand products, work with so many different suppliers, and change our product mix based on consumer demand, it is impossible to maintain an accurate list of the products we sell.

To ensure that we are providing our customers with up-to-date information, we encourage you to contact the Customer Information Center when you have a question about any of the products we sell. We can research your question and respond to you more quickly if you can provide us with the UPC (Universal Product Code) number located on the product.

How do I set up an account to take advantage of the site features?
Click on the "Log In" in the header and you’ll see the information on the left that we need to register you.

• Passwords are case sensitive, so capitalized letters matter.
• Be sure to check for typos in your email ID or password before submitting.
• Check for characters in your password that may look similar to other characters, for example, the letter "O" may look like a "0" (zero).
• If you have forgotten your password, use the "forgot password" feature.
• If you have registered but have not received a confirmation email, you may have entered your email address incorrectly when you registered. You can enter your email ID into the "forgot password" feature to verify if your email is in our system or not. If it is, a security question will be asked and if it is not, an error message will appear.
• If you have recently used the "forgot password" feature, ensure that you are using the most recent password sent to you.
• If you’re registered and cannot reset your password through the "forgot password" feature, please contact us.

I cannot register a new account; how can I join?
To register successfully, please follow these tips:

• Use a valid email address that is spelled correctly
• Type in your email address to verify it, rather than paste it from above or elsewhere
• Select a security question and answer you can easily remember.

If you see an error message stating that the email address you entered is already in use, you may have already registered. If so, you can check your email for a previous registration confirmation. If not, you can use the "forgot password" feature to try and reset your password, which should send a new password to your email account.

If you do not receive an email confirmation from Sweetbay immediately after registration, please allow several minutes for email networks to send the message to your account. If you still do not receive a message after some time, check to see if the message went into a "spam" folder within your email program. If you still can’t find an email from Sweetbay after registration, try using the "forgot password" feature on mySweetbay to reset your password. This will send another email to you with a new password.
If you still can’t register, you can try to make a new account with a different email address.

I forgot my password, how do I recover it?
You can reset your password by using the "forgot password" feature on sweetbaysupermarket.com. This will send you a new email with a new password that you will need to use to login with. Please remember your security question and answer since it is required to reset your password.

I need more help with mySweetbay; how do I get it?
You can contact us by filling out our contact us form under About Sweetbay. The more detailed your feedback, the better we will be able to assist you.