EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been edited to reflect a planned December opening date.

HOLLAND TWP. — Hollanders clamoring for a healthier grocery option will get their wish this fall, when Harvest Health Foods opens a location in Holland Township.

Construction is underway on the new retail store at 12683 Greenly St.

“We broke ground around the first week of March, but we had bought the property about a year ago,” said Emily Nol, who owns Harvest Health with her husband Mitch. “We've been working on all the plans for about a year and finally officially broke ground in March.”

The couple hopes to open the location in December. It'll be their largest, totaling 16,000 square feet with 13,000 square feet of retail space.

“It's always been (our) dream to open another store and we've always kind of had Holland on our mind,” Emily said. “I actually graduated from Hope College in 2012 and lived in Holland for four years and spent a lot of time there.”

The store will have USDA produce, expanded offerings in the wellness section, a refrigerated section triple the size of other stores, a freezer section twice as big, and a larger beer and wine selection. The Holland location will also have a smoothie, juice and coffee bar called Henry's Coffee Bar, in honor of the store's first and second generation owners.

“Our whole business model is to not be a 30,000-square-foot store and have everything and anything,” Mitch said. “We really want to narrow it down to the items we want to carry, and I think this bigger yet smaller footprint really accomplishes that.”

The couple will hire about 20-25 new employees, with some transfers from existing stores in Grand Rapids and Hudsonville.

“The timing was right and the spot was right,” Emily said. “We're still kind of pinching ourselves that this dream is going to be a reality.”

Harvest Health opened in Grand Rapids in 1952, shortly after Henry Diedering came to the U.S. from the Netherlands, according to its website. His daughter (and Emily's mother), Cathy, took over in 1991. Her husband, also named Henry, joined the business in 1997 and the couple expanded to a second Grand Rapids location.

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The shop in Hudsonville opened in 2004. Harvest Health specializes in natural, organic groceries and produce, plus local offerings and vitamins and supplements. Learn more at harvesthealthfoods.com.

“We're very excited and we feel very blessed to be able to come into (Holland) and bring our values and our business to all the customers there," Mitch said. "We are thrilled and honored.”

— Contact freelancer Austin Metz at ametz@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Harvest Health Foods is coming to Holland in 2023