Austin, Texas — Whole Foods Market is introducing a new, quick-shop store format designed to provide customers in urban neighborhoods a quick, convenient shopping experience. The new format, called Whole Foods Market Daily Shop, will initially launch on the Upper East Side in Manhattan with additional locations in New York City to follow. The first store, located at 1175 Third Ave., is expected to open this year. Following the New York City launch, Whole Foods Market plans to bring the format to other cities across the country.
Ranging between 7,000 and 14,000 square feet, the quick-shop stores are about a quarter to half the footprint of an average 40,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market store, paving the way for expansion in dense, metropolitan areas. In bustling hubs like Manhattan where proximity matters, these stores will bring Whole Foods Market closer to existing customers, while extending the company’s reach to others in surrounding neighborhoods.
Whole Foods Market Daily Shop will provide a convenient option for grab-and-go meals and snacks, weekly essentials and a quick, easy destination to pick up ingredients to complete a meal. Though smaller, the stores will still offer Whole Foods Market favorites, including an ample selection of fresh, seasonal produce, meat and seafood, prepared foods like sandwiches and pre-packed meals, breads, alcohol and supplements, as well as a handpicked range of local specialties and the 365 by Whole Foods Market brand. In addition, the location that is expected to open this year will be the first Whole Foods Market store in Manhattan to offer Juice & Java, a venue for coffee, tea, fresh pressed juices, smoothies, sandwiches, soups and various desserts.
“At our new store formats, we’re tailoring every square foot to the unique, fast-paced needs of urban lifestyles,” says Christina Minardi, executive vice president growth & development, Whole Foods Market & Amazon. “Expanding our footprint with Whole Foods Market Daily Shop is key to our growth.”
The new format stores will not replace the traditional Whole Foods Market store format. In fact, this quick-shop format is one more way Whole Foods Market and Amazon are innovating to build a best-in-class grocery shopping experience that offers multiple ways for customers to conveniently shop.
In 2023, Whole Foods Market added its 17th store in New York City at One Wall Street, underscoring the company’s dedication to enhancing the urban customer experience and expanding its urban real estate footprint. Whole Foods Market currently has more than 530 stores in the U.S., UK and Canada with more than 75 stores in the pipeline.
Founded in 1980, Austin, Texas-based Whole Foods Market is the world’s leading natural and organic foods retailer and the first certified organic national grocer in the United States. Whole Foods is part of Amazon’s Worldwide Grocery Stores. For more information, visit https://media.wholefoodsmarket.com/.
SOURCE: Whole Foods Market