Sprouts Farmers Market expansion plan includes opening another Charlotte grocery store
Sprouts Farmers Market is sprouting up in a competitor’s former space in Steele Creek amid growing grocery store competition in the Charlotte market.
The specialty grocery store is expected to open this fall at 14124 Steele Creek Road, company spokeswoman Ashley Lang confirmed Thursday. The 24,250-square-foot building in the Rivergate shopping center area has sat vacant for nearly three years since Earth Fare closed.
The Steele Creek store will hire about 100 full- and part-time employees, Lang said.
The southwest Charlotte near Lake Wylie is part of the Phoenix-based grocery store chain’s expansion plan to open 32 stores across the country this year, Lang said.
Similar to Earth Fare, Sprouts focuses on organic and natural foods and products.
“More than 500 Sprout brands are USDA-certified organic and 70% are non-GMO verified,” Lang said. “We also like to partner with local farmers and bakeries to build strong community connections.”
Sprouts has five stores in North Carolina, including one in Charlotte that opened in 2018 at 15121 Ballancroft Parkway in Ballantyne.
Earth Fares closed
In 2020, Asheville-based Earth Fare filed for bankruptcy and closed all 55 stores in 10 states, including seven in the Charlotte region. The Steele Creek store had opened in January 2019.
Some stores began reopening after Hulsing Enterprises purchased the brand in March 2020. Earth Fare opened six stores around Charlotte, but has since closed two.
Earth Fare is significantly smaller than Sprouts, with 20 stores in eight states, including the Carolinas, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee and Virginia.
About Sprouts
Sprouts has 380 stores in 23 states and about 31,000 employees.
The natural foods grocery store was founded 21 years ago and has been rapidly expanding, having just this year opened eight stores in Arizona, California, Florida, Tennessee and Virginia.
Sprouts does not have plans to open any other stores this year in the Charlotte market, Lang said.
The company reported third-quarter net sales total of $1.6 billion, a 5% increase from the same period in 2021, ending Oct. 2.
Grocery store competition
The Steele Creek store faces competition not only from nearby Publix, Harris Teeter and Target, but a growing field of competitors throughout Charlotte.
Supermarket competitors Walmart and Harris Teeter, owned by The Kroger Co., are No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, according to industry publication Chain Store Guide.
This month, Publix opened a 48,387-square-foot store at North Creek Village in Huntersville.
The Florida-based grocer has plans to open at least six other 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.
▪ In January, Lowes Foods said it will open a store at Kellswater Commons in Kannapolis. The Winston-Salem-based grocer also plans to open a store this year at Christenbury Village shopping center in Concord. Last year, Lowes Foods debuted its first-of-its-kind store in Huntersville in a former Earth Fare at 14021 Boren St. with a food-hall style design and an entertainment area.
▪ In December, Super G Mart, a family-owned international supermarket, opened its third and largest North Carolina store at 10500 Centrum Parkway in Pineville.
▪ In November, California-based online grocer Food Rocket made its East Coast debut opening within two Circle K stores in Charlotte at 8505 S. Tryon St. and 8008 Harris Station Blvd. It offers delivery within a half hour for a 6-mile radius.
▪ In November, Food Lion opened a store in Cleveland. Last year, the Salisbury-based grocery chain also opened stores in former Harris Teeter locations in Charlotte at 5939 Weddington Road in Charlotte and 2201 West W. T. Harris Blvd.
▪ Last year, discount German-grocer Lidl opened its 10th Charlotte-area store at 11200 Carmel Commons Boulevard.
This story was originally published February 24, 2023 at 6:10 AM with the headline "Sprouts Farmers Market expansion plan includes opening another Charlotte grocery store."