AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Whole Foods Market CEO Jason Buechel, alongside 70 Team Members, rang the Nasdaq opening bell today to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its first New York City flagship store. The 2004 opening of the Columbus Circle flagship store marked a major step in the company’s expansion in New York and transformed the city's grocery offerings with high-quality natural and organic foods in the largest grocery store the city had seen at that time.
Since then, Whole Foods Market has grown in the New York City area to 17 locations and more than 5,000 local Team Members.
"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 Vice President 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."
“Today, we're not just reflecting on our impact in New York City over the past two decades. We’re also looking forward to an exciting future of continuing growth in a city that has embraced Whole Foods Market with such enthusiasm,” said Jason Buechel, Whole Foods Market CEO. “It made perfect sense for us to launch a new store format right here. Whole Foods Market Daily Shop will conveniently bring our high-quality natural and organic food to even more New York City customers.”
The first Whole Foods Market Daily Shop location is set to open on the Upper East Side at 1175 Third Avenue this fall.
The company also announced today the second future location for the Whole Foods Market Daily Shop format, at 301 West 50th Street, in Hell’s Kitchen. An additional New York City location and national rollout will follow.
Whole Foods Market 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 innovative, smaller store format will range between 7,000 to 14,000 square feet, or about a quarter to half the footprint of an average 40,000 square foot store. It is designed to bring the freshest, high-quality ingredients to customers with a convenience that fits their fast-paced urban lifestyles. 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.
Whole Foods Market currently has more than 530 stores in the U.S., U.K. and Canada with more than 75 stores in development.
About Whole Foods Market
Founded in 1980, Austin-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. Part of Amazon’s Worldwide Grocery Stores, Whole Foods Market serves customers in more than 530 stores across the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. To learn more about Whole Foods Market, please visit https://media.wholefoodsmarket.com/.
