Mayor Chuck Cahn joined officials from Federal Realty Investment Trust Thursday, Feb. 14 in announcing that Whole Foods Market, the world’s leading natural and organic supermarket and the country’s first national certified organic grocer, will open at the Ellisburg Circle Shopping Center in 2014.
Whole Foods Market becomes the latest high-profile name to make its home in Cherry Hill, joining the likes of Henri Bendel, The North Face, Pottery Barn and Farmers Insurance, all of which have opened in the township in the last 14 months.
“I am thrilled to welcome Whole Foods Market as a neighbor in our community,” Cahn said. “In addition to creating local jobs, their arrival breathes new life into a property that will be transformed into a vibrant environment in the center of our town.”
Whole Foods Market’s arrival continues the renaissance of the Route 70/ Kings Highway corridor, and solidifies the township’s reputation as a destination for major national and international retailers.
It joins LourdesCare at Cherry Hill, which will open next month at Brace Road, as the newest face at the former circle.
“Revitalizing underutilized and vacant properties helps preserve property values, strengthens neighborhoods, and ultimately helps to attract interest from other businesses looking to relocate or expand,” said Council President David Fleisher. “Adding a brand like Whole Foods Market to our landscape shows that Cherry Hill is thriving, vibrant and diverse. It sends an important message to the rest of the world: ‘We chose Cherry Hill, and you should, too.’”
The township has seen an influx of new businesses since the start of the Cahn administration in 2012, including a number of new stores at both the Cherry Hill Mall and Garden State Park, a host of new restaurants, and a number of new professional and medical office facilities, including the Lourdes facility and Cooper Urgent Care at Route 70 and Old Orchard Road. Burlington Coat Factory, which opened in spring 2012, has helped to revitalize the Garden State Pavilions.
“The message has been sent: Cherry Hill is open for business,” Cahn said. “Whole Foods Market, along with other nearby projects, is reinventing Ellisburg into a prime location for shopping in the region.”
The Cherry Hill location will be the company’s 13th New Jersey store, and will occupy 47,000 of the Ellisburg Circle Shopping Center’s 267,000 total square feet. The Texas-based grocer operates more than 340 stores in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada.
“We are thrilled to offer another location and option to our customers,” said Scott Allshouse, Whole Foods Market Mid-Atlantic Regional President. “Neighboring our Marlton store, the community will find the new store to rival and share many of the same amenities they have come to love and enjoy. We look forward to community engagement, opportunity, growth and creating job opportunities.”
