Giant announces three new Philly grocery stores

Just a month after opening their first Graduate Hospital location, Giant supermarket has announced three new stores that they plan to open around the city over the course of this year.

University City, Northern Liberties, and Queen Village are the latest neighborhoods to become host to the grocery chain’s “heirloom market” stores. The markets differ from the traditional Giant stores in that they occupy a smaller footprint, and offer, “selections and features uniquely curated for the neighborhood [they] serve,” according to a statement from the grocery chain.

The stores will all offer local and seasonal foods; domestic beer and wine; a produce sampling station; and some unique offerings like sushi, kombucha on tap and a DIY station to blend olive oil and vinegar.

For now, the supermarket chain only gave details on the first of the three stores; the University City location at 3401 Chestnut Street will be 9,950-square feet large, and will offer a lot of grab-and-go items to cater to potential customers from nearby universities. They have plans to open the location.

The remaining locations, The Northern Liberties site at 1002 North Second Street, and the Queen Village spot at 201 South Street, will open in the fall and the winter, respectfully.

“The response to our first location in Graduate Hospital has exceeded our expectations and we couldn’t be more excited about the future of our GIANT Heirloom Market brand,” said said Giant president Nicholas Bertram.

The news follows a year that saw a lot of grocery stores announce plans for Philly locations in 2018.

The news follows several other high-profile grocery store developments that have come to the city within the last few years. First, there was a Whole Foods which opened on the Parkway in 2016, then Aldi’s leased out 25,000 square feet in a development behind Divine Lorraine just last year. A Sprouts made its Philly debut at Broad and Washington late last summer, and Trader Joe’s discussed hopes to open a second Center City location just last month.

• Giant grocery plans Graduate Hospital location [Curbed Philly]
• Developers to break ground this week on 14-story project behind Divine Lorraine [Curbed Philly]
• Lincoln Square officially opens at Broad and Washington [Curbed Philly]
• A new Trader Joe’s may be coming to Center City [Curbed Philly]