Publix’s newly opened store in Wesley Chapel, Florida, is the latest under its new store prototype, according to Grocery Dive daily. At 55,701 square feet, the Innovation Springs store, which opened Jan. 25, is larger than Publix’s usual store size of 45,000 to 50,000 square feet.
The new store opening marks Publix’s third under this larger, more experience-focused prototype. Publix opened the first of this kind in early 2023 in Tampa, Florida, and then its second in Louisville, Kentucky, which also marked its debut in the state.
Last year, Publix said it would transition the locations under its small-format GreenWise Market banner to its traditional supermarket brand and integrate some elements of its GreenWise locations, such as its Publix Pours in-store bar area, into its new store prototype. At the time, Publix said that the move aimed to address customers’ desire to enjoy aspects of a specialty banner while also having a more traditional grocery shopping experience.
THE NEW FLORIDA STORE
Located at 32265 Overpass Road, the Wesley Chapel store has several nontraditional grocery features, including a burrito bar, an olive bar, and a full-service pharmacy with a drive-thru, in addition to the typical perimeter and center store departments.
At the deli, shoppers can find an international selection of olives, antipastos, and hummus; more than 200 artisan cheeses; fresh pizzas; sushi; and ramen. The full-service deli counter also highlights Boar’s Head meats and cheeses.
The store features a bakery with fresh-made bread and rolls daily and a full-service seafood department with sushi chefs available to make hand-rolled selections daily. The meat department features custom meat cuts, Publix private label all-natural and organic GreenWise chicken, and GreenWise bacon.
The store’s wine department has an expanded variety of domestic and imported premium and specialty wines as well as fine wines made with organic grapes. Customers can find wine, beer, and kombucha on tap at the Pours area, which also has locally roasted coffee, acai bowls, and smoothies.
The store also has a salad bar, a hot food buffet, a bigger scratch bakery and larger displays in the meat and seafood departments, Tampa Beacon reported.
PUBLIX EXPANSION STRATEGY
Publix has 1,365 stores across Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and Kentucky. The Florida-based grocery chain is pushing its way further up north, entering Kroger’s home turf in the Cincinnati area with a store in Boone, Kentucky, and inching closer to Washington, D.C., with its store in Stafford, Virginia.
Publix has been making more investments in its stores. The grocer predicted at the start of last year that its capital spending would total $2.3 billion in 2023, according to a 10-K filing — a nearly 28% increase over the nearly $1.8 billion it spent in 2022.
The grocer opened 33 supermarkets, including nine replacements, remodeled 79 locations, and closed four during the nine months that ended Sept. 30, 2023, according to an SEC filing, noting that it plans to replace those four closed locations.
