Whole Foods to Open New Location in West Duluth

DULUTH (Press Release)- Whole Foods Co-op has announced that a second location will open up on Grand Ave. in west Duluth.

The Whole Foods Co-op Board of Directors unanimously voted approval to purchase the property at the corner of Grand Avenue and 45th Avenue West (4426 Grand Avenue).

“I thought we were on a wild goose chase to nowhere” said Rianna Reiter, Deli Buyer.

Whole Foods Co-op has been considering a second location since 2012 in response to customer demand and reaching capacity at their current location.

The cooperatively-owned grocery store currently has over 7,600 Owners. “

Our Owner and community surveys overwhelmingly indicated a preference for a West location both to expand the grocery options in that area and to provide a closer location for shoppers coming from Cloquet, Proctor, Wrenshall and Superior,” said Sharon Murphy, General Manager. "After conducting market and site-specific studies, the location across from Denfeld High School is a great fit for us.”

To announce the location to staff, management arranged a late-evening bus ride.

Employees were not told where the ride was going and over 50 of the 120 employees signed up on short notice and the faith that they were going to be in on some ground-level news.

The proposed property includes the current location of the Jefferson Bus Line building and some surrounding lots that have been for sale.

Demolition of the depot, environmental testing and design work need to be completed before ground breaking can begin.

Whole Foods Co-op Owners will have the ability to assist with financing the second location through Owner Loans or Class C preferred stock purchases.