Apparently 722 grocery stores around Charlotte aren’t enough. Publix and others plan more
As grocery store competition grows in the Charlotte region, the number of stores also is swelling to capture more customers.
Charlotte-area shoppers devote 5.2% of their income to food and drinks at home, according to the market share report released March 31 by sales tracking firm Chain Store Guide.
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There already are 722 stores in the Charlotte region, according to the report.
Here are more stores that are on the way:
▪ Lidl, a discount German grocer, plans to open its 11th area store at 3229 South Blvd. There is no opening date yet for the 31,000-square-foot store, company spokesman Chandler Spivey recently told The Charlotte Observer.
Last year, Lidl opened its 10th Charlotte-area store at 11200 Carmel Commons Blvd.
The first Charlotte Lidl debuted in December 2019 on Monroe Road. Lidl also has stores in Matthews, Rock Hill, Indian Trail, Gastonia and Concord. Lidl’s market share jumped to 2.7% last year from 1.9% in 2021, according to the Chain Store Guide report.
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▪ Lowes Foods plans to open three more stores in the Charlotte region: a 50,887-square-foot store at Kellswater Commons in Kannapolis; a 52,000-square-foot store Christenbury Village shopping center in Concord, and at The Exchange, Highway 521 and Possum Hollow Road in Indian Land, S.C., the Winston-Salem based grocer has said. The Concord store is expected to open this year, according to real estate company MVP Properties. Other timelines for opening have not been released.
Last year, Lowes Foods debuted its Huntersville store in the former Earth Fare site at 14021 Boren St. with a food-hall style design and an entertainment area for parties, live music, classes and game nights.
Lowes Foods has two other Charlotte-area locations in Mooresville and Harrisburg. Its market share rose last year to 0.6%, up from 0.4% in 2021, the Chain Store Guide report showed.
▪ Sprouts Farmers Market, based in Phoenix, will open its second Charlotte store in the fall at 14124 Steele Creek Road. The 24,250-square-foot building in the Rivergate shopping center area has sat vacant for nearly three years since Earth Fare closed. Sprouts will hire about 100 full- and part-time employees.
Sprouts’ other Charlotte store opened in 2018 at 15121 Ballancroft Parkway in Ballantyne. The specialty organic and natural grocer has four other North Carolina stores.
▪ Publix plans to open at least six stores in the Charlotte region: 10 Tryon building on the corner of Tryon and Ninth streets in uptown, Arboretum at Providence and Pineville-Matthews roads, Clear Creek Crossings development on the corner of Albemarle and Rocky River Church roads, Harris Farms Shopping Center in Mooresville, The Colony on the corner of Sharon and Colony roads in SouthPark and at 11525 Carmel Commons.
Publix does not have construction timelines or additional details on those sites, Publix spokesman Jared Glover told the Observer.
In February, Publix opened a 48,387-square-foot store at North Creek Village at 15010 Village Crossing Road in Huntersville. The Florida-based grocer has 22 stores in the Charlotte region after opening its first supermarket in 2014 in Ballantyne.
Publix market share dropped slightly to 9.2% from 9.4% in 2021, according to the latest Chain Store Guide report. Publix ranks fourth in the Charlotte region, behind Walmart, Harris Teeter and Food Lion.
Email grocery store news and tips to cmuccigrosso@charlotteobserver.com.
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