Whole Foods Market reveals second location of new small-format store
Whole Foods Market is doubling down on a new concept designed for dense, urban areas.
The natural and organic food grocer will open the second location of its small-format concept, dubbed Whole Foods Market Daily Shop, in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan (New York City). The first Daily Shop location is set to open this fall, on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. An additional New York City location and national rollout will follow.
Whole Foods revealed in March that it planned to debut a “quick-shop,” smaller-store concept. The new format will range between 7,000 to 14,000 sq. ft., which is about a quarter to half the footprint of an average 40,000 sq. ft. store. It paves the way for Whole Foods to expand in dense, metropolitan areas.
Daily Shop stores will feature a variety of fresh, seasonal produce, prepared foods and essential grocery items. Both of the newly announced New York City locations will also feature Juice & Java, a venue providing coffee, tea, fresh-pressed juices, smoothies, sandwiches, soups and desserts.
The new format is designed to bring “the freshest, high-quality ingredients to customers with a convenience that fits their fast-paced urban lifestyles,” Whole Foods stated.
“Serving more customers through this smaller format store is part of Amazon’s Worldwide Grocery Stores’ efforts to build a best-in-class shopping experience that meets all of the different customer needs,” the company added.
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Whole Foods revealed the news about the second Daily Shop as the company celebrated the 20th anniversary of its first New York City flagship store. The 2004 opening of the Columbus Circle flagship marked a major step in the company’s expansion in New York. Since then, Whole Foods has grown to 17 locations and more than 5,000 local associates in the New York City area.
“The opening of the Whole Foods Market Columbus Circle store was, in my opinion, one of the most important openings in the history of our company,” said Christina Minardi, executive VP of growth & development at Whole Foods Market & Amazon’s Worldwide Grocery Stores. “It made a huge impact on our future growth, and the excitement I felt at that opening is very much what I feel today with our team members.”
Whole Foods Market currently has more than 530 stores in the U.S., U.K. and Canada with more than 75 stores in development.
