Harris Teeter follows Whole Foods, which moved into downtown's upscale Harbor East several years ago. SuperFresh also recently opened a gourmet, urban format store on Charles Street in the Mount Vernon neighborhood.
"It's showing the growth in the city," said Geoffrey Mackler, a retail broker with H&R Retail. "The city is finally being exposed. In the past it's been overlooked. But as the economy is getting more difficult, retailers are looking at closer-in markets across the country to take advantage of densely populated areas."
There is also a growing demand across the country for grocers with strong customer service, large prepared food selections and a reputation for quality. Wegmans, The Fresh Market and Trader Joe's grocers have moved to the area in recent years. Traditional grocery stores such as Safeway and Giant have also increased their gourmet and prepared-food options.
Harris Teeter traces its origins to 1960 when Harris Super Markets and Teeter's Food Marts merged to form a 15-store chain, according to a company history. The grocer was bought by Ruddick Corp. in 1969, a holding company traded on the New York Stock Exchange, and now has 169 stores, with sales of $3.29 billion in its fiscal year ended Sept. 30. The grocer has had a prominent presence in the South for decades but only in the last several years has been aggressively expanding to the Northeast. It opened its first Maryland store in Darnestown in 2006 and its first Washington store last year.
"Our stores have been very well received in this area," said Harris Teeter spokeswoman Jennifer Panetta. "Shoppers have asked for it, and we're responding."
Harris Teeter is known for its prepared foods and value-card program, said Burt P. Flickinger III, managing director of the New York-based retail consulting firm Strategic Resource Group. Meat, produce and seafood are its signature departments, he said. The grocer tends to cater to upscale shoppers and is also popular with students.
"When they first moved into Maryland and Rehoboth Beach [Del.], it was a little bit of a struggle initially," Flickinger said. "Once they started to achieve some size and scale and consumer familiarity... they really started to take off."
The Arlington, Va., store has high, exposed ceilings, visible ductwork and beams. Like the one planned in Baltimore, it is part of a mixed-use community. The Arlington store is built beneath condos and its entrance is underground in a parking garage. The lighting in the store is dim, but bright lights spotlight produce and other food samplings.
