Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Make a sustaining gift today to support local journalism!

Whole Foods Opens First New Hampshire Location Tuesday

Mark Stevens via Flickr CC

The upscale grocer Whole Foods, which is based in Texas with close to 400 stores around the country, opens its first New Hampshire location on Tuesday in Nashua. 

The food business has its share of troubles in New Hampshire. Market Basket’s labor protests are keeping shelves empty and customers away. And last year, Shaw’s closed many of its stores, and Stop & Shop pulled out of the state altogether.

But despite these struggles and competition from big-box retailers or local farm stands, Whole Foods is betting on consumer demand for natural and organic. 

Jamiee Rondeau of Whole Foods says the 30,000 square foot facility in Nashua will include around 50 products from local suppliers, everything from produce to craft beer. 

"We were able to bring around one hundred jobs in the Nashua area, and we’re looking to hire even more. We have people who come in at four in the morning and bake our bread. We’re hiring cashiers, people to stock shelves, to do demos. It’s across the board."

 Rondea says within the next two years, Whole Foods will open stores in Bedford and Portsmouth.

Sheryl Rich-Kern has been contributing stories for NHPR since 2006, covering education, social services, business, health care and an occasional quirky yarn that epitomizes life in New Hampshire. Sherylâââ
Related Content

You make NHPR possible.

NHPR is nonprofit and independent. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. Your support makes this news available to everyone.

Give today. A monthly donation of $5 makes a real difference.