The Jones' have made it their mission to cater to the community in their newly opened Stoneman's Village IGA at Strath Village Shopping Centre by doing just that.

With more than four decades of experience, owner Steve Jones says he's learnt involving the township is essential to keeping a business going.

"We need each other and I always say our customers are our stakeholders," he said.

"If you do right by the community, you're on the right track."

Mr Jones said all 114 employees at the store he's either known in a past business or knows personally.

MORE NEWS: Amy Shark, Fatboy Slim and alt-j set to groove in region

"Even when we were building the place, we made sure we got in local builders, who brought with them local contractors and used local products where they could," he said.

"I employed some of our workers when they were just kids, and now they've come back to work for me in their adult years.

"It's nice to know they enjoyed it the first time around."

HR and operations manager Stephanie Jones, who happens to be Mr Jones' daughter, said there was a misconception surrounding IGA stores.

"A lot of people think IGA is always more expensive, but it's not always true," she said.

"We know the cost of living isn't getting any better for a lot of people, so we try and buy our products at a discounted rate so we can then pass that on to our customers.

"It's also important for us to stock and promote local products and produce, so we have the best quality possible."

Mr Jones said the store, which had sat vacant for almost five years, was also as environmentally friendly as possible.

"We've got solar panels on our roof, a fridge system that shuts off when it reaches the correct temperature instead of constantly running and a heat reclaim system, to name a few," he said.

"It's important to us our carbon footprint is as good as we can make it."

Mr Jones said when plans were being put together for the new store's build, he wanted to make sure every part was accessible for everyone.

"We have a lot of people say they struggle to get around a supermarket because the aisles are so narrow," he said.

OTHER STORIES:

"We could have opted to have an extra aisle, but I wanted to make sure people in wheelchairs and scooters could get around, even when staff are stocking shelves."

Ms Jones said she and her father enjoyed offering residents the option of free delivery as it's great to be out in the community.

"There are a lot of people who are physically unable to get to the supermarket or even people who don't have time after their busy days at work, so we can help with that," she said.

"It's just lovely to see the smiles on some people's faces when they see you, because you may be the only visitor they have for the day."

The team are in store every day between 8am and 8pm.

There will be a grand opening event on Thursday between 10am until 3pm so you can meet the faces behind the registers.

Digital subscribers now have the convenience of faster news, right at your fingertips with the Bendigo Advertiser app. Click here to download.