Meijer and Aldi to open new stores in Ohio this week

Ohio is set to see several grocery store openings this week.

Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Meijer will open two new 159,000-square-foot supercenters in Ohio—one in Warren and the second in Wooster—on Tuesday

Meijer, which has invested heavily in Ohio since opening its first store in 1981, said the new store openings will put the grocer at a 52-store count in the state. The retailer employs more than 11,000 team members statewide at its stores, as well as at its distribution and manufacturing facilities in Tipp City.   

But Meijer isn’t the only retailer investing in Ohio. Discount grocer Aldi will open its newest store in the state on Thursday at 110 Brimfield in Kent. This will be the grocery retailer’s second store in Kent and, according to the grocery retailer’s website, it operates 159 locations in Ohio.

Fast-growing West Coast discounter Grocery Outlet is also bringing its growth strategy to Ohio, according to local news outlet WKBN. The new store is reported to be in Boardman, a suburb of Youngstown, Ohio.

Grocery Outlet now operates 444 locations in eight states. During its first-quarter financial results reported last week, Grocery Outlet announced it is still on track to open 25 to 28 new stores nationwide this year.

On the independent front, locally owned Littleton’s Market is readying for its location in Upper Arlington, Ohio. The 2140 Tremont Center location on the northwest side of the city of Columbus used to house a UA Food Market grocery store.

With a goal of being a premier store for people who love food and wine, Littleton’s Market said it plans to continue to carry on a long tradition of locally owned groceries that began at Tremont Center in the 1950s and included Huffman’s Market.

An opening date for Littleton’s Market has not been set but the grocery retailer said it is looking to hire an executive chef and general manager.