This past December ToNeTo Atlantafirst reported that beloved specialty grocer Trader Joe's was looking to add as many as six new stores to the greater metro Atlanta area. At the time, only the store planned for Halcyon in Alpharetta was identified. We are pleased now to share several incredibly well placed sources tell us that another lease has been signed.
Phoenix, Arizona-based Sprouts closed its roughly 26,000 square foot store this past April after nearly eight years in business. (At the same time last year the grocer closed its nearly 30,000 square foot store in Duluth that remains vacant and available, according to Ackerman Retail, the Atlanta brokerage handling the center's leasing.)
Leasing materials for the Chastain Park center indicate that a little more than 11,000 square feet of the former Sprouts is "available" meaning the Trader Joe's will be about 15,000 square feet.
As the grocer is known for strict confidentiality requirements of both its landlords and leasing representatives, we were unable to get the Chastain Market store confirmed on the record.
The new store would be on the larger side of typical Trader Joe's - with most being between 8,000 and 15,000 square feet - and most existing Atlanta area stores in the 13,000 square foot range.
For reference, the existing Sandy Springs store is approximately 13,000 square feet while the Buckhead store is about 12,500 square feet. The two stores opened in 2006 and 2008, respectively. Also worth noting, the Sandy Springs store (6277 Roswell Road) and the Buckhead store (3183 Peachtree Road) are 3.4 miles and 3.2 miles, respectively, away from the upcoming Chastain Park store. The new store is expected to be in addition to rather than instead of any existing stores.
According to the marketing materials for Chastain Market, the center is "surrounded by the top ten wealthiest zip codes in the Atlanta MSA." Furthermore, a 2022 study by ATTOM Data indicated that homeowners do especially well when located near a Trader Joe's with significant home equity and home value increases.
Given that the space Trader Joe's will occupy in Chastain Park was already a grocer and the fact that the store tends to have less "going on" than a typical Kroger or Publix, there is reason to believe the conversion could be fairly simple. In recent weeks, interior work has started to separate the two spaces.
When it opens, Trader Joe's will join Pendolino, an upscale Italian restaurant from chef/owner Kevin Maxey which made its debut March 18. (In addition to the balance of the former Sprouts, the former Tupelo Honey Cafe space remains available to lease, too.)
Trader Joe's made news this week when it was reported that the grocer had for the first time in more than two decades, raised the price of its bananas - going from 19 cents to 23 cents - a more than 20 per cent increase. To some, the cheap bananas at Trader Joe's are like the $1.50 hot dog & drink combo at Costco. That said, and despite recent changes to Costco's CEO and CFO roles, Costco co-founder Jim Sinegal once famously said to then CEO Craig Jelinek, "If you raise the effing hot dog, I will kill you. Figure it out."
Monrovia, California-based Trader Joe's opened its first stores in metro Atlanta in October 2006. Today the company operates a total of six stores in metro Atlanta: Midtown, Buckhead, Sandy Springs, Roswell, Peachtree Corners, and East Cobb, with a seventh Georgia store in Athens which opened in late 2010.
The grocer currently operates more than 500 stores nationwide and has announced plans to open at least sixteen new stores in 2024 including those planned for southern cities such as Clearwater (Palm Harbor), Florida; Raleigh, N.C.; Leesburg, Virginia, and Mt. Pleasant (Isle of Palms) S.C., among others.
According to a source close to Trader Joe's, the new stores planned for Georgia, none of which have been publicly announced by the grocer, are: "in the Halcyon area of south Forsyth County,""in the Peachtree City area," 2 to 3 "in the Atlanta area," and one "in the Decatur area."
With Halcyon and one of the "Atlanta" stores identified, we are tracking details on the Peachtree City store and the Decatur store and hope to be able to share news on at least one more very soon.
If Trader Joe's does open in the above referenced locations, do you think Atlanta will have enough stores? What potential upcoming Trader Joe's store are you most excited about? What is your favorite Trader Joe's item?
Please share your thoughts below.
P.S. - Anyone from Trader Joe's who sees this, please bring back the cinnamon babka!