The Rite Buy Grocery joins the neighborhood for all the right reasons

Independent merchant to bring traditional shopping experience to Beacon Village

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
October 2, 2025

Diana Rhodes, will open The Rite Buy Grocery in Beacon Village, along with her husband Justin, later this fall. The market on Alexander Place will focus on offering locally sourced meat, dairy, produce and more in the heart of Swannanoa. Photo by Fred McCormick

Throughout the vast majority of its nearly 250-year history, residents of Swannanoa regularly turned to their neighbors to procure essential goods. A trip to the local market was not only a chance to pick up fresh, often locally sourced ingredients, it was an opportunity to connect with the community.

That classic experience, woven into the very fabric of the small unincorporated town, will return to Beacon Village this fall, when The Rite Buy Grocery welcomes customers to a fully renovated space on Alexander Place.

The idea to establish an independent market in the heart of Swannanoa came to Diana Rhodes, who is launching the business with her husband Justin, in a moment of exacerbation familiar to area residents in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Helene, which devasted the community in September of 2024. Diana, who found herself at a crossroad in her professional career after the natural disaster, opened her pantry to begin preparing dinner.

“I needed a can of chickpeas for a recipe, and I usually have them there, but I didn’t that night,” she said. “I drove to a few places nearby, and (Hopey & Co.) was closed and they didn’t have them at the Dollar General. I came home and was big mad about not having chickpeas.”

What might typically be dismissed as a mundane inconvenience carried additional significance in her post-Helene reality, according to the former e-commerce systems builder.

“When the storm hit, I was out of work and couldn’t pick up another contract because I couldn’t do the job without internet,” Diana said. “We both threw ourselves into recovery work. We’re both part of the Swannanoa Grassroots Alliance and my husband is the financial chair for the Buncombe County Long Term Recovery Group, so that really changed how we interact with our community.”

When given the opportunity to return to her longtime career, she found herself not longer interested in lending her professional skills to multi-million dollar corporations outside of her drastically altered hometown. She was far more invested in providing a valuable service to fellow Swannanoa residents.

“After realizing I couldn’t just run to a nearby store to quickly grab an ingredient I needed, I thought, ‘somebody has to do something about this,’” Diana said. “At that time, Daniel (co-owner of Short Sleeves Coffee), was moving out of this building and getting ready to open next door.”

After helping Daniel and Emily Lancaster set up their permanent Short Sleeves Coffee location next door, Justin came home with a possible plan for the 1,200-square-foot sheet metal building in the centrally situated village.

“He mentioned that I could put a store right there,” Diana said. “I laughed at him and said, ‘no, I have no business opening a grocery store.’ But, he started telling our friends and neighbors about the idea.”

With no experience in the industry, Diana was apprehensive while discussing the idea with other small business owners. They disputed the notion that her lack of experience would prevent her from successfully operating an independent store in a community left without any grocery options for more than a year.

“It turns out, I’ve been grocery shopping for a decent amount of my life, so, there’s that,” Diana said. “But, the more I talked to friends and family about it, and once I showed my dad the numbers, we all decided it could be done.”

Although she did not set out to be an entrepreneur, she embraced the opportunity as a meaningful investment in a community in which her bonds have strengthened since historic flooding swept away businesses along the Swannanoa River.

“I wasn’t just going to open anything,” she said. “We need a grocery store, so let’s open a grocery store. I’m just fortunate that I happen to be in a position where I can do it.”

The renovation process has been extensive, according to the owner, who completely overhauled the intimate space to maximize the limited square footage. Working within those confines will influence the inventory, according to Diana. Items readily available at nearby chains, like paper and plastic products, will not be included, while fresh produce, dairy and meat, seafood and beer and wine will be stocked in refrigerated cases in the store.

“We’ll also have a bulk food section, for things like rice, lentils, beans, dried fruit and flour, which saves a lot of space because we can go up with storage,” Diana said. “People can buy as little or as much as they need, and it’s a very economical way to shop.”

The Rite Buy Grocery will purchase most products directly from area farmers and producers, the owner added.

“That gives the farmer a higher profit margin and me a higher profit margin, and it means I can offer as low of a price as possible to the consumer,” she said. “It creates an economic donut where I’m working with regional farmers to supply my store, selling to local consumers and then going back to these farmers. It keeps local dollars as local as possible.”

The goal is to source as much of the store’s inventory as possible from within a 200-mile radius.

While the couple has yet to set an official opening date while continuing to navigate the permitting process, the feedback they have received from the community has been “overwhelmingly supportive,” Diana said. That support validates Diana’s decision to bring a locally owned and operated grocery store to the resurgent Beacon Village.

“I feel immense pride, along with a healthy amount of trepidation and pressure,” she said. “It’s important to me to not let this community down, so that really keeps me going.”

Renovating the small building has been more difficult than the Rhodes anticipated, but the prospect of bringing another needed business to downtown Swannanoa is worth it, according to Diana.

“When I’m having a hard day, the place I go in my mind is finally having the store open,” she said. “I come in, unlock the door, turn on some jazz and sweep the sidewalk in front of the store. Just this old-timey grocery feel, like the grocery store from Sesame Street. That’s what we want to bring to the community.”