At the end of September, the Smith family sold Sunshine Foods to Mollie Stone's Markets. The Smiths had owned the store at 1115 Main Street since 1975. The St. Helena Star reported that the deal was announced on a Tuesday in a news release. It ends one family's 50 years at St. Helena's only independent full-service grocery.
The release left some daily details open. The new owners did say what they mean to keep, though. Their recent purchases also show how they usually make changes: slowly, one store at a time, and often keeping the old name. If you shop at Sunshine, expect the store to change gradually as Mollie Stone's adds to what's already there.
What the Two Families Said
Both families talked about values more than business plans. In a joint statement quoted by the Star, Jay and Mike Smith said it was "extremely important to us to find another family-owned company that shares our values and understands the importance of employees, customers, quality and community." They added: "We believe we have found that in the Stone family and Mollie Stone's Markets."
The buyers made a commitment you'll be able to check on your own shopping trips. Mollie Stone's promised to keep the store's "neighborhood-market character and emphasis on fresh, local and specialty foods that have made Sunshine Foods a St. Helena institution." The company also said it plans to invest in the store through improvements, products and services.
"We don't view this simply as acquiring a grocery store. We view it as being entrusted with a 50-year family legacy, and we take that responsibility very seriously." Elliott Stone, owner of Mollie Stone's Markets, as quoted by the St. Helena Star
Founder and CEO Mike Stone said the company intends "to be a long-term part of the St. Helena and Napa Valley community." The Stone family started Mollie Stone's in 1986. According to the Star, it has eight other Bay Area stores, including locations in San Francisco, Palo Alto, Sausalito and Greenbrae.
What the Announcement Didn't Settle
The announcement left several questions without public answers:
- Whether the store will keep the Sunshine Foods name
- What happens to the current staff
- Whether Jay Smith will stay on for a while
- What the planned improvements are, and when they start
The answers matter because of how the store was run. When Jay Smith announced the sale to the Star last fall, Sunshine had 85 employees, most of them full time. He said he had never laid anybody off. He also said that if he found a buyer, he expected to stay six months to a year to help with the handover. The September announcement didn't say whether that plan still holds.
He described a store that is expensive to run. He cited growing red tape and the need to hire outside firms for work the store used to do itself, including human resources, bookkeeping and payroll. He also said grocery margins are so thin that Sunshine clears half a percent of profit "if we're lucky." With those pressures, it makes sense that he wanted a buyer with more than one store behind it.
Until there's news, the store's own website lists hours of 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. The deli and meat counters are open until 8 p.m. and the kitchen grill until 3 p.m. Those are the store's current hours, not promises tied to the sale.
The Closest Parallel Happened in Marin This June
Mollie Stone's made a similar purchase just four months earlier. In June 2026 it agreed to buy United Markets, a family-run grocer with stores in San Rafael and San Anselmo. The story was much the same as Sunshine's: a family business, a second-generation owner, and two independent grocers that had known each other for years. The company is now applying that approach in St. Helena.
The Marin Independent Journal reported that United Markets was founded 70 years ago and employed 100 people. Mike Stone said: "We want to preserve what customers love about United. The objective is to build on that foundation." On the store's name, he said: "We're going to keep it for now as United Markets with the same concept, price-conscious."
He also described how quickly things would change, and his words fit Main Street just as well: "We are going to ask the customers what they would like to see; what products they want in the stores or services. But each store is different, so we have to satisfy the palates of the neighborhood. It will be gradual. It all won't occur overnight."
On employees, the United announcement said Mollie Stone's "intends to retain and support the existing team members." It added that future investments would come "over time" and that plans would be shared in the months ahead. The San Francisco Chronicle gave more detail: Stone planned to keep United's name and branding and to keep workers after a "short probationary period." The Chronicle also reported that some shoppers worried about higher prices and losing local character.
SFGATE reported that United Markets owner Kelly Smith said the stores would keep the United Markets name after the June 28 transition. The Journal reported that she called the Stones her first choice "because they're community-minded and they take care of their employees, and because they're union, and because they're family-owned and local."
In Marin, the same buyer took over a well-known neighborhood store with a long-serving staff, kept the name for now, said it would ask customers what they wanted, and promised to change things gradually. St. Helena's deal may play out differently.
A Longer View From Twin Peaks
United shows how Mollie Stone's handles the first few months. Tower Market in San Francisco's Twin Peaks shows the longer run. A neighborhood history of Tower Market records that it was sold to Mollie Stone's in 2006. Twenty years later the company calls it "Mollie Stone's Tower Market," so the original name is still part of the store's identity.
The company's post about renovating Tower Market describes keeping the store's original charm. The upgrades it lists are new floors, new deli cases, better produce lighting and signage, and renovated fish and butcher departments. The structure stays and the departments get upgraded. If the pattern holds, the "improvements, products and services" promised for St. Helena could look like that.
Down the Block, Another Handoff
Sunshine isn't the only longtime St. Helena business continuing under new owners this fall. The St. Helena Chamber of Commerce reports that La Bohème and Act Two have reopened under the Goleno-Wilken Foundation. The two resale shops have been in town for more than 15 years. They still sell affordable, good-quality clothing and homewares, and their mission now supports the Parkinson's Association of Northern California.
The Chamber lists these hours:
- La Bohème, 1428 Main St., Suite D: Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m.
- Act Two, 345 La Fata St.: Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Donations: Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the La Fata Street location
These shops follow the same pattern as Sunshine. A business that had reached the end of one owner's run is staying open with someone new in charge. The Chamber marked both changes in back-to-back posts. Its note on Sunshine ends with the line: "Some things may change, but it sounds like the heart of Sunshine is staying right where it belongs!"
The First Holiday Season Under New Owners
The coming weeks will be Sunshine's first holiday season since the sale. The town's calendar is already filling up.
The Chamber has set the annual tree lighting for Wednesday, November 25, 2026, the night before Thanksgiving. The Beringer Wine Barrel Tree returns, and more details are still to come.
Before that, the city calendar lists an artist reception, the Mary Ann Artist Reception, on November 6 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the St. Helena Public Library, 1492 Library Lane.
In December, the library hosts a Festejo Comunitario Posada on December 17 from 7 to 9 p.m., with singing, food and piñatas, according to the city's December calendar.
These dates make up Sunshine's first holiday season under Mollie Stone's. Any changes the new owners make this season will happen with Thanksgiving and the December holidays under way.
At the Peterson Lawson Group, we work with families handing over things built across generations, whether that's an estate, a vineyard or a home that held 50 years of holidays. If your family is planning a transition like that and wants a clear starting point, Request a Confidential Home Valuation and we'll handle it with the same care.