10 Grocery Chains Opening Dozens of New Stores in 2024
America has turned into something of a wonderland for grocery shoppers thanks to the mind-boggling array of stores spread throughout the country. Whether you're on the hunt for bargain bulk buys, discount groceries, extensive cheese selections, tantalizing bakery departments, or the chance to score free samples while you shop, there are a plethora of grocers in the United States to suit your needs. And in 2024, the number of grocery stores available to consumers is only growing.
Though the year is still somewhat young, many of America's biggest grocery chains have already announced ambitious expansion plans that will see them debut scores of new locations throughout the country. The list includes major names like Costco, Trader Joe's, Sprouts Farmers Market, and others. If you're lucky, these grocers could very well be heading to an area near you in the near future.
Read on for 10 grocery chains that are growing rapidly in 2024. And next, check out the Best New Grocery Products of the Year—So Far!
Aldi
Aldi has been on an expansion tear in recent years, opening more than 100 new locations in 2023 and either debuting or remodeling 139 stores the prior year. This year, the retailer has no plans of slowing down its growth momentum.
The discount grocer announced earlier this month that it plans to open a whopping 800 new locations over the next five years. The Northeast, Midwest, and West are some of the markets where Aldi intends to expand its footprint. Aldi will also grow its presence in the Southeast by converting a "significant number" of existing Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarkets into its own brand after recently acquiring the parent company of the two grocery chains, according to a press release.
The company is opening a significant number of new stores in 2024 alone. The grand openings page on the Aldi website currently lists more than 10 openings just throughout February, March, and April. Chicago; Hillsborough, N.C.; and Millington, Tenn. are among the cities getting new Aldi stores in the first half of 2024.
BJ's Wholesale Club
The 244-unit BJ's Wholesale Club doesn't have nearly as high of a store count as its two major rivals, Costco and Sam's Club, both of which operate more than 800 locations globally. However, it will narrow that margin this year with a slew of planned openings.
BJ's announced earlier in 2024 that it anticipates opening 12 new warehouses throughout the fiscal year. Several of these openings have already taken place in North Jacksonville, Fla.; Johnson City, N.Y.; and Goodlettsville, Tenn.
And in a new announcement on March 27, the company revealed the locations of five additional warehouses that it plans to open in 2024: Maryville, Tenn.; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; Palm Coast, Fla.; West Palm Beach, Fla.; and Carmel, Ind.
"Our real estate pipeline is the strongest it's been in 20 years, and we look forward to helping even more families save up to 25% off grocery store prices as we add clubs to both new and existing markets," said Bill Werner, executive vice president of strategy and development for BJ's, in a statement.
Publix
2024 is shaping up to be a major year of growth for Publix, a regional grocery chain concentrated in the Southeast with more than 1,300 locations.
The retailer has already opened 13 new locations since the start of the year, according to its website. Nine of those new stores are located in its home state of Florida, while the others are located across Kentucky, Georgia, and Tennessee.
Publix also has six additional stores opening in the Sunshine State next month alone. Interested customers should check out the retailer's website for more exact addresses and opening date details on these upcoming stores.
Costco
Costco's famous $1.50 hot dog combos and $4.99 rotisserie chickens are coming to even more neighborhoods this year. The retailer announced during a March earnings call that it plans to open 30 new warehouses in the 2024 fiscal year, including relocations of two existing stores. That's slightly down from the 33 openings Costco said it was planning for the year during an earlier December earnings call.
Some of those openings will take place in overseas markets like China and Japan, but many will be within America's borders. Costco's website lists upcoming openings in Loomis, Calif.; North Port, Fla.; Mount Juliet, Tenn.; Riverbank, Calif.; and Richmond, Texas. All of these locations are scheduled to begin serving customers between May and June this year. Costco also recently held a grand opening for another new warehouse in Natomas, Calif., in March.
Trader Joe's
If you don't currently have a Trader Joe's in your area, don't be too surprised if that changes soon.
The grocery chain lists planned openings on its website, and it recently added 17 new stores to its pipeline. Though none of the upcoming locations have exact opening dates yet, the announcements for all of those stores note: "Our Crew is working hard so we can open our doors in 2024."
Five of the new stores will be located in California, while others will open in Virginia, New Jersey, Texas, Nevada, Arizona, Oregon, Utah, Idaho, Florida, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Interested customers should keep checking back on the Trader Joe's website for updates on the opening dates.
Whole Foods
Whole Foods isn't debuting new locations quite as rapidly as some of the other chains on this list, but that doesn't mean it isn't growing its footprint in 2024. The grocer has already opened three major new stores this year in Albuquerque, N.M.; St. Petersburg, Fla.; and South Windsor, Conn.
Whole Foods also recently announced that it plans to start opening smaller stores aimed at giving customers a quick and convenient shopping experience. These stores, called Whole Foods Market Daily Shops, will sell grab-and-go meals, snacks, fresh produce, meat, bread, alcohol, supplements, and some local products.
The first location is scheduled to open on Manhattan's Upper East Side this year, with more New York City stores to follow. Whole Foods also eventually plans to bring the concept to other cities.
The company said it has more than 75 total new stores in its expansion pipeline, which should significantly grow its current unit count of 530+ locations in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada.
Dollar General
Dollar General may very well be one of the fastest-growing retailers in the United States right now. The discount chain—which opened its 20,000th store last month—recently announced during an earnings call that it plans to debut a whopping 800 new locations in 2024. CEO Todd Vasos also said that they'll remodel 1,500 additional stores and relocate 85 others, totaling approximately 2,385 projects for the year.
The planned openings will include 30 new locations for Dollar General's spinoff chain called Popshelf, which focuses on affordable non-food items like home décor, cleaning supplies, and health and beauty products. But the vast majority of openings will be under the company's flagship dollar store brand, which sells a variety of foods, cleaning supplies, and other staple household items.
Vasos didn't specify which markets are slated to receive new Dollar General stores, so consumers across the United States should keep an eye out for potential openings in their corners of the country.
Sprouts Farmers Market
In great news for shoppers on the hunt for more natural and organic foods, Sprouts Farmers Market is headed to plenty of additional neighborhoods this year. The company expects to open approximately 35 new locations in 2024, according to its latest earnings announcement. That's even more growth than the 30 new stores it opened in 2023.
Since the start of the year, Sprouts has already opened a handful of new locations, including in Miami; Rockwall, Texas; Bakersfield, Calif.; and Victorville, Calif. The retailer's site also lists additional upcoming openings in Cliffwood, N.J.; Philadelphia; Phoenix; Fort Worth, Texas; and Rio Rancho, N.M.
Walmart
Walmart unveiled a major growth initiative in January 2024, announcing plans to open or convert more than 150 new stores over the next five years. The retailer also said that it intended to remodel a whopping 650 existing stores across 47 states and Puerto Rico over the following 12 months, so customers could potentially see a significant number of new and improved Walmart locations make their debut this year alone.
The first two of those remodeled stores are scheduled to open this spring in Atlanta and Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., according to a press release. All of the brand-new and remodeled locations will feature a new design that Walmart calls its "Store of the Future" concept. They'll have better layouts, larger product selections, and innovative technology aimed at improving the customer experience.
The Walmart-owned Sam's Club warehouse also announced in 2023 that it planned to open more than 30 new locations in the coming years. It said at the time that the first of those new clubs would debut in Florida in 2024, though details on the exact opening date are currently available.
Grocery Outlet
The discount chain Grocery Outlet is already a large force in the grocery industry with its 400+ stores across the nation, but it's working diligently to grow its footprint even more in 2024.
The grocer has already opened a handful of new stores since the start of the year, including in Marin City, Calif.; Encinitas, Calif.; Mays Landing, N.J.; and Parkesburg, Pa. Grocery Outlet is also scheduled to open two additional new locations on April 4 in Rehoboth Beach, Del., and Dublin Calif., according to its website.
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