"The heart of this business." That is how the Dilworth family described the people who work at Dill's Food City. In its July letter announcing the sale to Food Lion, the family wrote that leaving those associates was "undoubtedly the hardest part."
The family told employees on Thursday, July 23, 2026. WNEG reported it two days later, and by then the questions had already started. When does the Lavonia store change over? What happens in Royston? What becomes of the Sunday deli?
Some of those questions now have answers. The Lavonia store reopens as a Food Lion on Wednesday, October 14, at 8 a.m. That gives the date for the change most people will see. The longer story is in Royston, on the same Cook Street lot where William "Anderson" Dilworth opened his first store in 1955. A grocery is going back on that lot, under a company that already has a store across town.
Ninety-one years, two towns, one street
The Dilworth grocery business in Franklin County goes back to 1935. That year C.D. Dilworth opened his first store in the Red Hill community. His son, William Anderson Dilworth, took over the business in 1955 and opened his first store on Cook Street in Royston. Over the decades, Dill's Food City ran two IGA grocery stores, one in Lavonia and one in Royston.
The past two and a half years moved fast.
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| 1935 | C.D. Dilworth opens his first store in the Red Hill community |
| 1955 | Anderson Dilworth takes over and opens on Cook Street in Royston |
| February 2024 | Fire destroys the Royston store; the cause is ruled accidental |
| February 2024 | Stan Dilworth says the business has about 150 employees and Royston workers will not lose their jobs |
| July 23, 2026 | The family tells employees the business is being sold to Food Lion |
| July 28, 2026 | WLHR reports changeover work under way in Lavonia; hours cut to 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. |
| August 4, 2026 | Food Lion confirms a new, bigger Royston store on the former Dill's site |
| October 14, 2026 | Food Lion grand opening in Lavonia, 8 a.m. |
The fire entry marks the start of the gap. The Cook Street store burned in February 2024. Right after the fire, the family's plan was to rebuild a Dill's on the same spot, and in August 2024, 92.1 WLHR reported that the owners hoped construction would start within weeks. The sale replaced that plan. As of this month, more than two and a half years have passed since a Dill's operated on the street where the family business first came to town.
What Lavonia shoppers will find on October 14
Lavonia is the part people can see from the road. Tonya Greganus, operations manager for Food Lion's Augusta Region, which includes Lavonia and Royston, gave 92.1 WLHR the October 14 date and said opening day will be "filled with lots of fun activities." She suggests getting there early. WLHR's headline promises gift cards and prizes, but the story does not list amounts or who qualifies.
About eleven weeks separate WLHR's July 28 report that changeover work was under way and the October 14 grand opening. Food Lion kept the store open as Dill's Food City the whole time. In August, Greg Finchum, Food Lion's president, said the store would keep running under the Dill's name through the renovation and switch banners when the remodel was done. That is why the Lavonia store has kept the shorter 9 p.m. closing time since late July.
Three things will be new or different once the Food Lion sign is up:
- A Hot Bar in place of the Dill's deli. WLHR reported that many longtime customers will miss the deli, where they picked up Sunday lunch after church. Greganus said Food Lion will have a similar Hot Bar.
- Pickup and home delivery. Finchum said customers will get pickup and home delivery through the Food Lion To Go website or app.
- A virtual shopping app. Greganus listed it as something new for Lavonia shoppers.
Finchum also said shoppers can expect an easy-to-shop layout and a wide assortment. He said Food Lion is "honored to build on the strong foundation" the Dilworth family created.
Royston is where the sale plays out over time
The deal covered more than the Lavonia building. It also included the former Royston Dill's property, and that property is where Food Lion plans to build. Food Lion corporate described the new store as "new, bigger," on the land where the original Dill's Food City stood before the 2024 fire.
Here the story gets more complicated than a simple name change. Food Lion already runs a Royston store at 1041 Franklin Springs St., and its store locator lists it as open 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. The new, larger store on Cook Street would give Food Lion a second Royston site. When the sale was announced, WLHR reported it was unclear what Food Lion planned to do with the Franklin Springs Street store. No public update since then has answered that.
Hours show part of the difference. The Franklin Springs Street store's listed 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. schedule runs later than the 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. schedule the Lavonia store has kept during its remodel. Food Lion has not published Lavonia's regular hours after the conversion, so it is too early to compare the two Food Lion stores.
Stan Dilworth, who co-owns the business with Tracy Dilworth, framed the sale as being about the grocery stores more than the family name. "As we considered the future, we knew our highest priority was ensuring our communities would continue to have strong" grocery stores, he said, adding that the family believes "Food Lion is the right fit."
What has not been announced yet
Clear answers matter more than guesses here, and several questions are still open as of early October 2026. Finchum said in August that details on the Royston store would come "at a later date." Here is what public reporting has not covered yet:
- A Royston timeline. Food Lion has announced no construction schedule or projected opening for the Cook Street store.
- Plans for 1041 Franklin Springs St. Food Lion has not said whether the current Royston store stays open after the new one is built.
- Lavonia's regular hours. The October opening coverage gives the 8 a.m. grand-opening time but not the daily schedule after that.
- Dill's gift cards and rewards. No public statement covers whether Dill's gift cards or loyalty programs carry over or have a deadline. Ask at the customer service desk before October 14 if you have a balance.
- Staffing. The family's letter said its priority was making sure associates would have "opportunities going forward," but no specific job terms have been announced. Stan Dilworth's 2024 promise that Royston workers would keep their jobs was about the family's own rebuild plan, which the sale replaced.
"We admire the Dilworth family's shared commitment to serving their community." Greg Finchum, President, Food Lion
Food Lion's January 2026 growth announcement named four new stores for the first quarter, in Pontiac and Simpsonville, South Carolina, and in Statesville and Greensboro, North Carolina. None were in Northeast Georgia. That makes the Lavonia conversion and the planned Cook Street store an addition to the company's Georgia footprint that wasn't part of the year's announced openings.
The Lavonia date to keep
For Lavonia, the plan is simple. The grand opening is Wednesday, October 14, at 8 a.m., and Greganus recommends arriving early for the prizes. The Royston date has not been set, and the Cook Street site where Anderson Dilworth opened in 1955 will wait on Food Lion's next announcement.
Changes like a new grocery on Cook Street or a remodeled anchor store in Lavonia affect what a Franklin County address is like to live at day to day. Haley Powers follows these local changes closely and is happy to talk through what they could mean for a home in Lavonia or Royston. Book your white-glove consultation.
