Phoenix-based supermarket chain Sprouts Farmers Market is opening two new Valley stores this year, as it expands its footprint nationwide.

The two new Valley stores will be in Gilbert and Avondale, with both planned to open in October. The Gilbert location, at Higley and Baseline roads, will open Oct. 4. The Avondale location, at 99th Avenue and McDowell Road, will open Oct. 25.

In the company’s quarterly earnings call in July, Curtis Valentine, the chief financial officer, said Sprouts is opening 35 new stores nationwide. Most of those openings, he said, will be in the fourth quarter, like the two in the Phoenix area.

On the call, Valentine said the company had faced some timing challenges for opening new stores, and developers had slowed some of their projects because of high interest rates and construction costs, delaying some of the openings.

According to data from Chain Store Guide, which conducts studies and collects data on retailers, Sprouts has 34 locations in Maricopa and Pinal counties and 400 locations total. In 2023, Sprouts did $668 million in sales, giving it a 3.4% market share in the Phoenix area.   – more at azcentral.com