By Rich Laden, The Gazette, Colorado Springs, Colo. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News
Mar. 12--We all have to eat.
Nobody knows that better than national and regional groceries and speciality food stores, which aren't letting a stagnant economy dampen their interest in Colorado Springs.
A King Soopers-anchored shopping center planned for the city's northwest side is to be the latest in a series of expansions by food stores in fast-growing Springs neighborhoods and outlying areas.
The 66,985-square-foot King Soopers, slightly smaller than the chain's store at Woodmen Road and Rangewood Drive, would headline the proposed 100,037-square-foot Grand View Marketplace. Grand View is planned for 12.3 acres northwest of Centennial Boulevard and Fillmore Street, according to documents filed with the Colorado Springs planning office.
Lyda Hill, a wealthy Springs and Texas businesswoman, intends to sell the land to a St. Louis real estate company, which would develop the project. A company official Tuesday declined comment until the project is further along.
An arm of Cincinnati-based Kroger Co., King Soopers also plans a store at Powers and Stetson Hills boulevards on the city's northeast side, and is considering one in the unincorporated Falcon area northeast of town. There are eight Springs-area King Soopers stores.
'It's certainly about meeting demand, or rooftops, as you call it,' King Soopers real estate director Gary Fritzler said Tuesday. 'And, it's about trying to strategically position yourself so your company is where you want it to be in the future.'
King Soopers is only one grocery aggressively considering new locations. Other stores in the works or recently completed include:
Whole Foods Market Inc., the Austin, Texas-based natural and organic foods supermarket, said last month it will open its first Springs store in the former Cub Foods, northeast of Academy Boulevard and Agora Point.
Boulder-based Wild Oats Natural Marketplace, a Whole Foods competitor with one Springs store, said it will open a second Springs grocery in the First & Main Town Center, northeast of Powers Boulevard and Constitution Avenue. Wild Oats has a store at North Academy and Union Boulevard.
Albertsons Inc., the Boise, Idaho-based grocery, recently opened its sixth area store in the Union Town Center, at Union and Research Drive. It is building a store at Austin Bluffs Parkway and Dublin Boulevard.
Wal-Mart of Bentonville, Ark., the world's largest retailer, recently opened its fifth Supercenter, at Powers and Palmer Park boulevards, and plans a sixth at Powers and Woodmen Road. The Supercenters have a full line of groceries.
Minneapolis-based Target Corp. opened its first Springs grocery-selling Super Target in October, at Powers Boulevard and North Carefree Circle. It is part of the First & Main Town Center development.
The newly opened or in-the-works stores are in fast-growing areas on the city's north, northeast and east sides.
'It definitely reflects the growth of your community,' said Sonja Tuitele, Wild Oats' corporate communications director. 'We've added a store there because our existing store has done so well. The east side of town is enjoying quite a bit of retail development. We want to be part of that. We want to be on the cutting edge of that.'
Positioning stores near other retail anchors also is key, said Fred Veitch, a vice president with Nor'wood Development Group of Colorado Springs, which is developing First & Main. The shopping center's Cinemark movie theater complex, Lowe's Home Improvement and Galyan's sporting goods are draws for other stores.
'We're (First & Main) pulling on a very strong regional basis,' Veitch said, adding Wild Oats will benefit from that pull.
Grocery chains don't have a general rule on how many homes are needed to support a single store.
While rooftops are important, groceries consider traffic patterns, the location of large employers and other factors.
Being in the right location helps establish loyalty with customers. Brand loyalty, in turn, generates sales, said Todd Hultquist, a spokesman for the Washington D.C.-based Food Marketing Institute. In fact, a significant amount of a single store's revenue can come from just 15 percent of customers, he said.
'It's a very competitive industry,' Hultquist said.
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(c) 2003, The Gazette, Colorado Springs, Colo. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.
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