EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market here said Wednesday it expects to open its 100th store in California on Sept. 8 as part of a four-store opening schedule that day.
With 98 California stores already operating, the chain said the store in Sylmar, in the San Fernando Valley, will be the chain's 100th in the state. During September Fresh & Easy said it will open a total of nine stores from San Diego in the south to Fresno in the central part of the state, including the four on Sept. 8, two more on Sept. 15 and three more on Sept. 22.
With 34 stores in Phoenix and 27 in Las Vegas, the September openings will give the company a total of 168 U.S. locations opened in just under three years.
Asked why the chain is concentrating its growth in California, Brendan Wonnacott, communications director, said the stores in the Phoenix and Las Vegas markets are more concentrated in a tighter geography and because "there's a strong demand for these stores" in California.