Los Angeles is getting its biggest Whole Foods Market yet. The grocery chain will open a 63,082-square-foot flagship store at 355 S. Ogden Drive on November 11, inside the Bloom on Third shopping center at the corner of 3rd Street and Fairfax — roughly one and a half times the size of a typical Whole Foods.
The new store replaces the chain’s original Fairfax location next door, which has served the neighborhood since 2002. In its place, shoppers will find an expanded specialty cheese counter staffed by a Certified Cheese Professional, a coffee and juice bar, a seafood and full-service meat counter, an upgraded bakery and floral department, and a taproom pouring wine by the glass alongside a charcuterie venue. More than 780 wines and 600 craft beers will be on the shelves, with taproom events featuring a DJ, wine tastings and demos planned for November 14 and 21.
For LA’s small business community, the opening carries more than just grocery news. More than 1,900 local items from upwards of 400 California-based suppliers will stock the shelves, sourced with help from the company’s local forager. Among the names shoppers may recognize: Kenter Canyon Farms, Cinagro Farms, Mary’s, Pozzi Ranch, Tartine Bakery, Tsar Nicoulai and Canyon Coffee — a reminder that a single big-box opening can still send real revenue down to small, independent LA producers.
The store is also backing one local supplier directly: Reprise Health is receiving a low-interest loan through the Whole Foods Market Lending Program to help fund its expansion into roughly 135 Whole Foods locations nationwide. Since 2006, that program has extended about $42 million in capital to more than 300 small and emerging suppliers — a path worth knowing about for any Southern California food or beverage brand looking to scale into bigger retail. Food Cycle LA, a local food-rescue nonprofit, will also receive a donation tied to the opening.
Doors open at 9 a.m. on November 11, with regular hours running 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. The first 300 customers in line will receive a limited-edition tote bag, and early shoppers can grab a Secret Saver coupon worth up to $100 off.
Source: Whole Foods Market Newsroom
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