Trader Joe's to open in Fort Worth on June 15
Category: Global AHK News, Global DEint News, GACC South NewsTrader Joe's, the value-priced, California-based grocery chain with a cult following, finally announced that it will open its first Texas stores on June 15 in Fort Worth and The Woodlands, a Houston suburb.
The announcement made Thursday by the German-owned chain said the Fort Worth store will be located at 2711 S. Hulen St. This was the former site of a short-lived, upscale wine store and French bakery called Ronnie's. It was later occupied by Dorian's Interior Design, which closed abruptly after Trader Joe's negotiated a lease.
Job applications are being accepted daily from 9 a.m. to noon, and from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the location, said spokeswoman Alison Mochizuki. The news release did not indicate how many more stores would open in the region or give a timetable.
The 365 Trader Joe's stores have built a loyal following for having offered drinkable Charles Shaw-label wines -- dubbed "Two-Buck Chuck" because of its original $2 price, now $3 or more depending on shipping costs -- as well as gourmet condiments, sauces and high-quality, low-price frozen prepared food.
Though smaller in size, Trader Joe's would be going toe-to-toe with such competitors as Sprouts Farmers Market, part of a Phoenix-owned chain specializing in natural foods, Central Market, the gourmet supermarkets owned by San Antonio-based H.E. Butt Grocery Co., and Austin-based Whole Foods. It is a few blocks from a Safeway-owned Tom Thumb supermarket.
The closest Trader Joe's to Fort Worth is in Leadwood, Kan., 455 miles away.
The chain is owned by the traditionally closed-mouthed Albrecht family of Germany, which also runs the steep-discount Aldi chain.
The family split its northern and southern European holdings between feuding brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht decades ago.
Aldi Sud (South), run by Karl until his retirement, operates the chain's U.S. namesake stores. Aldi Nord, operated by Theo until his death two years ago, acquired Trader Joe's in 1979, and the chain is reportedly still managed independently of the U.S. Aldi stores. At his death at 88, Theo Albrecht was estimated by Forbes magazine to have been worth $16.7 billion, which made him the 31st richest person in the world. His heirs include two sons, Theo Jr., 61, and Berthold, 58.
Source: www.star-telegram.com - Webview
