Schnucks Opens its 1st Express Location

Schnuck Markets, Inc. opened its first Schnucks Express location, a small-footprint grocery store that’s connected to the retailer’s EatWell Natural Food Store in Columbia, Missouri, the retailer announced Wednesday.

The Schnucks Express occupies about 11,000 square feet of the 42,000-square-foot building. It has its own entrance but is also accessible through the EatWell store, the company said.

“After listening to our customers’ feedback, we’ve learned that they enjoy the natural and organic offerings available at EatWell but also are seeking the convenience of conventional grocery items,” David Isinghood, Schnucks senior director of EatWell-Health & Wellness, said in a statement.

The downsized market will sell “many customer favorites that are available at traditional Schnucks stores that were not previously available at EatWell,” a Schnucks spokesperson said in an email to WGB.

Schnuck Markets opened EatWell, A Natural Food Store by Schnucks, in June 2020. The space had previously been a Lucky’s Market.

It continues to be the only location for the banner.

The store sells clean-label items, fresh-squeezed juices, organic produce and other natural-living items. EatWell also has a sushi and ramen bar, made-to-order sandwiches, pizza and seafood cooked in-store.

“The store is a neighborhood store where the pleasure of food and the promise of health come together for a balanced lifestyle,” Schnucks said in a statement. “Eatwell also includes a focus on organic, local and specialty products.”

The Schnucks Express location is not the first time the retailer has introduced a scaled-down concept. Last year, the company opened a Schnucks Fresh market in Jasper, Indiana. The 18,000-square-foot grocery store focuses on key departments like produce, meat, seafood and bakery.

Schnucks currently has three locations in Columbia, Missouri.

The retailer, which was founded in St. Louis in 1939, is family-owned and operates 112 markets in four Midwestern states.