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New Whole Foods Market opens in Washington, D.C.

Store features more than 800 local products

Alarice Rajagopal, Contributing writer

June 1, 2023

2 Min Read
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Certified organic national grocer, Whole Foods Market is adding Washington, D.C., to its more than 500 stores in the U.S., Canada, and the United Kingdom. The new store location is set to be a 47,000-square-foot unit, with doors opening in June. 

Part of the historic Walter Reed development, the new location’s product assortment includes more than 800 local items from across the greater D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area, sourced with the help of Daniela D’Ambrosio, a local forager for Whole Foods Market’s Mid-Atlantic Region.

For the grand-opening morning, customers will receive complimentary coffee and breakfast bites, and the first 300 customers in line will receive a tote bag and a Secret Saver coupon featuring offers up to $100 off.

Additional features of the Washington D.C. store include:

  • A specialty department dedicated to cheesemakers and artisan producers, overseen by a certified cheese professional who can offer recommendations and create custom boards

  • A curated grocery section with exclusive local brands

  • Grocery pickup 

  • A full-service seafood counter with local options and offerings that are either sustainable, wild-caught, or responsibly farmed

  • A full-service meat counter, with butchers available to cut steaks and poultry to order 

  • A selection of more than 250 craft beers 

  • A prepared foods section including sushi, pizza, and hot and salad bars

  • A bakery department offering made-in-house bread and special diet items 

  • A whole body section featuring a variety of local products, including candles, hair and body care, and gifts

Related:Whole Foods announces layoffs, restructuring

While its parent company Amazon has acknowledged the slowing of opening more Amazon Fresh stores in order to re-evaluate its concept’s economics, the strategy behind Whole Foods growth has not changed.

In response to an analyst’s question during that call, Andrew Jassy, president and CEO of Amazon, said grocery remains “an important and strategic area” for Amazon because it is such a large market segment and there is a lot of frequency in how consumers shop for groceries. 

 

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About the Author

Alarice Rajagopal

Contributing writer, Supermarket News

Alarice Rajagopal is a contributing writer for Supermarket News, which delivers the ultimate in competitive business intelligence, news and information for executives in the food retail and grocery industry. She has over 10 years of writing experience covering the consumer goods business and technology industry. Alarice has also written for a variety of other industries and content areas over her editorial career including retail, cyber security, hospitality and marketing/product marketing for the B2B space.

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