Earth Fare reopening several grocery stores in SC, including in Columbia, Rock Hill
A bright spot has emerged from a few dark weeks of seemingly endless business shutdowns.
Earth Fare, the much-loved health- and specialty-foods grocer that closed its stores across the country earlier this year, is reopening in Columbia.
The Devine Street store just outside downtown Columbia is one of at least seven Earth Fare locations reopening under new ownership after the company declared bankruptcy in February. The store has confirmed it also will reopen locations in Rock Hill and Summerville and is working to secure a fourth location in South Carolina.
New Earth Fare president Bethany Turon, a former executive of the original company, confirmed the Columbia store’s reopening on Monday.
When it announced its store closings in February, Earth Fare cited “challenges in the retail industry” that kept the company from expanding and improving and hindered “its ability to refinance its debt.” The company sought buyers for its 50 stores nationwide, which included six in South Carolina.
A group of former executives, investors and a co-founder of the original company came together to buy the Earth Fare brand name out of bankruptcy and resurrect the business with a back-to-basics mindset.
When word got out that Earth Fare was making a comeback, the new company leaders were flooded with messages from people in Columbia asking for the store to return, Turon said.
“That was so moving,” Turon said. “To me, that’s what it’s all about, is the way we support the community, and it has to be a two-way street. All of their passion for the store, I believe, is what powered it to get stood back up. ...
“How can you not support that? That’s exactly what we’re supposed to be about.”
While Columbia customers have had their pleas granted, they’ll have to wait a while longer to return to the aisles of their beloved store. A reopening date is still uncertain, but Turon said she’s hopeful the Columbia store could be running by fall.
And when customers return, they’ll see a number of familiar faces working there, Turon said.
“For me personally, a lot of what has driven me is to support those people who were so passionate about the company,” she said. “To allow them to continue to do that, to be able to give them their homes back and continue making a difference in this way, that’s my ‘why.’”
The company’s leaders have discussed the difficult timing of relaunching a business in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Turon said.
“We’ve thought about what makes the most sense, and at the end of the day, if we’re able to bring healthy food to people who aren’t able to get that somewhere else right now, it’s a service that we would want to provide,” Turon said.
This story was originally published April 13, 2020 at 4:40 PM.
