2020 hasn't been kind to Space Coast grocery shoppers, at least not those who prefer stores specializing in fresh, organic products.
Lucky's Market in West Melbourne and Earth Fare in Viera were shuttered earlier this month.
In mid-January, locally owned specialty grocer Petty's Meat Market in Suntree closed.
Each announcement brought questions and speculation.
Does the Space Coast have a population that will sustain specialty grocers?
"Petty's, Lucky's, and now Earth Fare. It was obvious that the category was becoming oversaturated ...,"Yancey Poole said on a post in FLORIDA TODAY's food-centric Facebook group, 321 Flavor: Where Brevard Eats.
But if the economy is doing well, why are these places closing?
"I don’t get it," Veronique Cagle said on another thread. "What’s the deal with the so called booming economy. Earth Fare & Lucky’s. This is awful."
And what do the closures mean for the county's hope of someday getting a Trader Joe's or Whole Foods?
Here are a few answers to your burning specialty grocery questions:
Petty's Meat Market in Suntree to close in January; Babco*ck to remain open with new owners
Why can't we have anything nice?
It's not us, it's them. Really.
Lucky's and Earth Fare closed because their parent companies filed for bankruptcy, not because the stores weren't performing well.
The Colorado-based founders of Lucky's Market even hoped to keep the West Melbourne store open. Alas, plans changed.
Petty's closed because owner Leigh Pettigrew was ready to retire. She and her brother, Jay, sold Petty's locations in Suntree and Melbourne. The new owners kept the Melbourne store open, but decided to close the Suntree store to make way for another business.
"In my opinion, all these specialty grocers, a lot of them expanded at the same time," said Gina Acosta, senior editor for Progressive Grocer, a publication and website for the retail food industry, referring to companies including Lucky's Market, Earth Fare, Sprouts and Fresh Time.
"They all kind of came up at the same time and targeted the same neighborhoods, same shopping centers, same demographics. I just don't think there's enough demand for all of them."
While individual stores might have performed well for Lucky's and Earth Fare,the companies as a whole floundered.
Some speculated that The Fresh Market, which opened four years ago just up Wickham Road from Petty's, was to blame for the other grocer's closing. But no, that's not the case, said Leigh Pettigrew.
"It's solely just because my brother and I wanted to have more time with our family and friends," Leigh Pettigrew said in December.
And speaking of The Fresh Market ...
Is it in danger, too?
No. Dan Portnoy, chief merchandising officer for the Greensboro, North Carolina-based grocer, said The Fresh Market shoppers can rest easy.
"I think we're doing pretty well there," he said. "We have absolutely no plans to close whatsoever. We've seen a pickup in business. We're pretty happy that we're able to serve the community there."
The Fresh Market has 152 stores in 22 states, including 44 in Florida.
Portnoy describes the grocer as having an "old-world, European feel."
Much of the fresh produce is organic. The aisles are wide and easy to navigate.
"We have a full-service meat department," he said. Meat is cut to customer specifications. Beef is ground fresh every day.
Bread is baked daily, too. Cheese and wine selections are carefully curated.
The store also specializes in meals, from meal-prep kits to oven-ready meals to hot dinners ready for thetable.
Can we get aTrader Joe's, already? Whole Foods? Costco?
Not yet, but maybe.
Let's start with Trader Joe's.
"We¹re always grateful to hear Trader Joe¹s is wanted in a particular area/neighborhood," TJ's public relations director Kenya Friend-Daniel said in an email. "At this time, there are no plans underway to bring a new location to the Space Coast, but we're always looking for locations that would be a greatfit. Just because that area is not a part of our current plans, that doesnot mean we'll never bring a store to that area.
The California-based grocery chain has a cult-like following and a reputation for fresh, gourmet food at reasonable prices. Back in the fall, a group in the Eau Gallie Arts District started a grassroots campaign to woo TJ's, in hopes of bringing one to an empty storefront at the corner of Eau Gallie Boulevard and U.S. 1.
Is Trader Joe's headed for the Eau Gallie Arts District? Cannot predict now
"We consider a number of factors when deciding where to open a new store," Friend-Daniel said. "Timing has a lot to do with it, as well as identifying a great location,
and a great team to run the store. ... We also consider howfar our distribution centers are from a potential location, as well as thenumber of households in an area.
"We want to be certain we have the amountof households we think we need for a Trader Joe’s store to be successful."
If the folks at Trader Joe's determined a former Lucky's Market or Earth Fare location was a good fit, "we would definitely consider it," Friend-Daniel said. "It’s just that there’s currently nothingin the works."
How about Whole Foods? The Amazon-owned organic grocer didn't respond to questions, so we have no answeron this one.
Things are looking good, however, for Costco.
The project is still in the early stages of site plan review, but the warehouse retailer has submitted a site plan application for a spot at the future intersection of the Pineda Causeway and Lake Andrew Drive extensions. The application shows the planned construction would include a 156,000-square-foot Costco complete with a liquor store and gas pumps.
So now where am I supposed to get my specialty foods and organics?
Take a deep breath, folks. We've still got lots of options here, starting with The Fresh Market in Suntree.
More traditional stores such as Publix, Walmart and Target are expanding their offerings of organics, natural foods and plant-based foods.
"Are they turning into Whole Foods and Earth Fare?" Acosta said. "No, because people still want to buy their Heinz Ketchup. But there's no doubt that natural, organic and plant-based is no longer a trend. It's gone mainstream and is expanding every year."
German import Aldi also has been gaining traction in the area, with six stores from Titusville to Palm Bay and a new Suntree location in the works.
"Aldi has really stepped up its game, in terms of natural, organic products," Progressive Grocer's Acosta said. "A lot of people are comparing Trader Joe's to Aldi now. Aldi has gone through a renaissance."
Here are a few other stores to consider. Not all carry organics, but they have selections of fresh meats, fresh produce and other specialty foods.
- Downtown Produce. Large selection of fresh produce, meats, prepared meals, wine and cheeses.7856 Ellis Road, Melbourne.
- Green Turtle Market. Curated wine selection, prepared meals, produce, meats, lunch cafe.855 E. Eau Gallie Blvd., Indian Harbour Beach.
- Hayes Meats and Gourment Foods. Butcher and deli, prepared salads, wine and beer.285 Fortenberry Road, Merritt Island.
- The Jungle Organic Restaurant and Whole Foods Market. Organic refrigerated and frozen foods, supplements and beauty products, organic restaurant.2500 State Road A1A, Indialantic.
- Melbourne Beach Market. Groceries, house-made grab-and-go meals, wine. 302 Ocean Ave., Melbourne Beach.
- Paradise Health & Nutrition. Organic produce, bulk food items, health supplements.6300 N. Wickham Road, Suntree;4270 Minton Road, Unit 112, West Melbourne;1150 Malabar Road S.E. Unit 113, Palm Bay.
- Petty's Meat Market. Meats, wine, cheeses, specialty foods.1616 S. Babco*ck St., Melbourne.
- The Produce Place of Suntree. Fresh produce, herbs and berries.5775 N. Wickham Road, Melbourne.
- Sunseed Coop. Organic produce, ready-made sandwiches, salad bar, supplements.6615 N. Atlantic Ave., Cape Canaveral.
- Thrifty Produce and Meat.Meat and fresh produce, including unusual and difficult to find items.865 N. Courtenay Parkway, Merritt Island.
- Thrifty Specialty Produce and Meat. Butcher as well as large variety of fruits and vegetables, including hard-to-find Asian and Latin specialties.2447 N. Wickham Road, Unit104, Melbourne; and2135 Palm Bay Road N.E. Unit 1, Palm Bay.
- Wassi's Meat Market. Butcher shop with wide range of meats and desserts, plus grills and supplies.830 N. Wickham Road Unit 10, Melbourne.
So why do we want specialty grocers in the first place?
Lots of things influence our shopping habits, according to Dr. Andrew Cudmore, a marketing professor in Florida Tech's Bisk College of Business.
"Publix is great, because it has everything under the sun," he said.
But that doesn't mean smaller stores with half the selection don't have a place on our shopping lists.
"Their strength can come in choosing the right selections," Cudmore said.
"I go to Thrifty, Publix, Aldi and I order online from Misfits (an organic produce delivery service)," he said. "Obviously, one place doesn't service all of my needs."
Thrifty has fresh vegetables and good prices on meats, he said, but not much else.
Aldi has good prices, he said, but"if you're a brand shopper, they're going to have brands you don't know."
Like a growing number of shoppers, Cudmore eschews excessive packaging, so he's drawn to stores that carry bulk items he can take home in his own reusable containers.
He also has recently adopted a plant-based diet, so he also looks for places that offers vegan options.
"Specialty stores that customize have an opportunity," he said, "because Publix can't be everything to everybody."
But Publix canbe everything to a lot of people
The Lakeland-based grocery chainhas been upping its natural, plant-based food game for a few years now, and the stores are good at reacting to customers' wants and needs.
When Cudmore told a manager at his local Publix about a product he could only find at Lucky's Market, that product soon appeared on Publix shelves.
Publix has been expanding its Greenwise organic brand in stores, and has even started opening Greenwise Markets, which specialize in organic, natural and specialty groceries.
Six Greenwise Markets have opened in Florida, Alabama and South Carolina. Six more are opening soon in Florida and Georgia.
According to the greenwisemarket.com, the stores have curated wine and cheese collections, prepared foods and drink holders on their carts so shoppers can sip wine, beer or kombucha while perusing the aisles. (A trick learned from Lucky's Market, maybe? Or Petty's, which offered free beer on tap to shoppers?)
"Either Publix is late to the game, or they've perfected the specialty, natural grocery model, and it's going to be super successful," Acosta said. "So we're going to have to see what happens."
Publix already is known for its clean stores and customer service.
"If anyone can make that small, specialty grocer thing work, it's Publix," she said.
The future of grocery shopping
Another player in the grocery game isn't even a store, or at least not the inside of a store.
Online ordering, Amazonand curbside pickup are changing the way people shop.
"Retail is in the middle of an apocalyptic shift because of online shopping," Acosta said. "How that is going to hash out for groceries is a very good question."
Busy momslove the convenience of pulling into the parking lot at Walmartor Target and having their pre-selected groceries loaded into the car.
And online shopping isn't just a millennial thing. Acosta has a neighbor in her 70s who swears by it,saying it helps keep her on budget by avoiding impulse buys.
"Not to mention you save gas, you save time," Acosta said. "It's a great thing for the elderly and the retired."
But grocery delivery and curbside pickup remove the social aspect of shopping. `
"How many people grocery shop and it's a chore, and how many make it an enjoyable task?" said Cudmore. "They like to select their meats, and they like to sip on a beer or listen to music, talk with their friends smell the smells, experience the tactile aspect of squeezing the bread and knowing it's fresh."
For some, grocery shopping may be their only interaction with other people, he said.
He views online ordering as just another option for shoppers looking to custom-fit their needs rather than the death knell for brick and mortar stores.
"They thought VHS tapes would end the movie industry," he said. "What they failed to recognize was that people like to go to movie theaters. They like the social experience."
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