MOULTRIE, Ga. — Hundreds of people were waiting outside when Publix supermarket opened its doors for the first time in Moultrie Wednesday morning.

A short ribbon-cutting ceremony preceded the 8 a.m. opening, which included free reusable grocery bags to the first 1,000 customers and giveaways of $100 gift cards.

The 45,600 square-foot Publix store offers the    traditional grocery, meat, produce, dairy and frozen food departments, a company spokesperson said, and it will contain the      following departments: pharmacy, bakery, deli,    floral, and fresh sea-      food.

Approximately 150 Publix associates will be employed at the store.  

Store hours will be 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, except for opening day, which will be 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Pharmacy hours are 9 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday.

“We are extremely excited to be in the beautiful and hospitable city as Moultrie’s newest neighbor and look forward to serving this growing community with the services and products our customers and their families deserve,” said Dwaine Stevens, media and community relations manager for Publix.

Publix is privately owned and operated by its 187,500 employees, with 2015 sales of $32.4 billion. Currently Publix has 1,130 stores in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina. The company has been named one of Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For in America” for 19 consecutive years.

For more information, visit the company’s website, corporate.publix.com.