Shoppers wait for the official opening of an expanded Kroger store in Hanover County.
A full-fledged grocery war broke out in Richmond this year.
In a battle for territory, market share and the precious grocery budgets of the Richmond shopper, new-to-the-area grocery chains arrived to town with big plans and plenty of ammunition, while established players fired back with massive renovations and store expansions.
Perhaps the biggest shot across the bow of the local grocery market came from Wegmans, a sought-after chain from the Northeast whose announced arrival caused a stir in Richmond. The company has two stores planned in forthcoming developments in Midlothian and Short Pump.
That didn’t stop other grocers from the higher end of the industry from expanding into the market. Whole Foods announced plans for its second store in the region. It’ll set up in the Pleasants Hardware space on West Broad Street near VCU and will anchor a new development by the Sauer spice empire.
The opening of Southern Season added a gourmet grocer to the mix.
Southern Season, a gourmet store from Chapel Hill, N.C., opened a 50,000-square-foot store as the first piece of the new Libbie Mill development on Staples Mill Road.
And the brand with the most ambitious plans in Richmond in 2014 was the world’s largest retailer. Walmart announced or confirmed plans for at least four of its Neighborhood Market grocery concept locations. The company has 42,000-square-foot stores planned for Meadowbrook Shopping Center and Watermark Town Center in Chesterfield, on the site of a former roadside motel on Brook Road in Henrico County and one on Sliding Hill Road in Hanover County.
Walmart also has plans for at least two other new stores, including one of its typical superstores and yet another smaller concept. Its biggest splash was the announcement of a new grocery and retail store as part of a new project that will replace the long-neglected Fairfield Commons Mall in Henrico County. It’ll also test the VCU market with a Walmart on Campus store on West Grace Street.
One of the region’s biggest established grocery brands held an aggressive stance during the year as new competition arrived. Kroger continued the expansion of its massive Marketplace stores that include a huge grocery section and an arm to sell home goods and other retail items. It opened new Marketplace stores on Staples Mill Road and another in the works on Iron Bridge Road in Chesterfield. It also added space to its Rutland Commons and Swift Creek stores and has another new store planned for Colonial Heights.
Heading into 2015, the grocery war appears far from over.
Plans have been submitted to the city for the demolition of a Ford dealership to make way for a new grocery store.
German discount grocer Aldi has several stores planned for the region, while another German chain may have its eye on car dealership property in Henrico.
A 15-acre, Ukrop’s-owned retail property not far from Innsbrook is under contract to be bought by a Baltimore-based company with plans for 107,000 square feet of retail space anchored by an unidentified 76,000-square-foot grocery store.
And a future battleground may be west of Short Pump Town Center, where a local developer is in talks with a national grocery chain to be part of its massive new development.
But deeper into some of the region’s growing urban neighborhoods, markets of a different sort began popping up during the year. Small, independent neighborhood markets and specialty grocers became a trend with stores opening in Church Hill, the Fan and Jackson Ward. Another is planned for downtown on Grace Street.
Richmond better bring its appetite.
Shoppers wait for the official opening of an expanded Kroger store in Hanover County.
A full-fledged grocery war broke out in Richmond this year.
In a battle for territory, market share and the precious grocery budgets of the Richmond shopper, new-to-the-area grocery chains arrived to town with big plans and plenty of ammunition, while established players fired back with massive renovations and store expansions.
Perhaps the biggest shot across the bow of the local grocery market came from Wegmans, a sought-after chain from the Northeast whose announced arrival caused a stir in Richmond. The company has two stores planned in forthcoming developments in Midlothian and Short Pump.
That didn’t stop other grocers from the higher end of the industry from expanding into the market. Whole Foods announced plans for its second store in the region. It’ll set up in the Pleasants Hardware space on West Broad Street near VCU and will anchor a new development by the Sauer spice empire.
The opening of Southern Season added a gourmet grocer to the mix.
Southern Season, a gourmet store from Chapel Hill, N.C., opened a 50,000-square-foot store as the first piece of the new Libbie Mill development on Staples Mill Road.
And the brand with the most ambitious plans in Richmond in 2014 was the world’s largest retailer. Walmart announced or confirmed plans for at least four of its Neighborhood Market grocery concept locations. The company has 42,000-square-foot stores planned for Meadowbrook Shopping Center and Watermark Town Center in Chesterfield, on the site of a former roadside motel on Brook Road in Henrico County and one on Sliding Hill Road in Hanover County.
Walmart also has plans for at least two other new stores, including one of its typical superstores and yet another smaller concept. Its biggest splash was the announcement of a new grocery and retail store as part of a new project that will replace the long-neglected Fairfield Commons Mall in Henrico County. It’ll also test the VCU market with a Walmart on Campus store on West Grace Street.
One of the region’s biggest established grocery brands held an aggressive stance during the year as new competition arrived. Kroger continued the expansion of its massive Marketplace stores that include a huge grocery section and an arm to sell home goods and other retail items. It opened new Marketplace stores on Staples Mill Road and another in the works on Iron Bridge Road in Chesterfield. It also added space to its Rutland Commons and Swift Creek stores and has another new store planned for Colonial Heights.
Heading into 2015, the grocery war appears far from over.
Plans have been submitted to the city for the demolition of a Ford dealership to make way for a new grocery store.
German discount grocer Aldi has several stores planned for the region, while another German chain may have its eye on car dealership property in Henrico.
A 15-acre, Ukrop’s-owned retail property not far from Innsbrook is under contract to be bought by a Baltimore-based company with plans for 107,000 square feet of retail space anchored by an unidentified 76,000-square-foot grocery store.
And a future battleground may be west of Short Pump Town Center, where a local developer is in talks with a national grocery chain to be part of its massive new development.
But deeper into some of the region’s growing urban neighborhoods, markets of a different sort began popping up during the year. Small, independent neighborhood markets and specialty grocers became a trend with stores opening in Church Hill, the Fan and Jackson Ward. Another is planned for downtown on Grace Street.
Richmond better bring its appetite.