Whole Foods Market is gearing up for a return to Encinitas, with the grocer expected to take over the large anchor spot at Encinitas Marketplace that Kohl's is set to vacate in early 2025. There is still no firm opening date, but the move would bring the high-end chain back to a North County retail corridor it exited in 2017, and neighbors are already eyeing the busy El Camino Real center for any hint of construction crews.
A marketing brochure from Jones Lang LaSalle lists a 22,200-square-foot anchor suite and pitches the center to premium grocers, and The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that the brochure shows Whole Foods Market slated for the former Kohl's footprint. The shopping center itself measures roughly 124,411 square feet, according to CommercialCafe.
Encinitas Marketplace's retail history
Encinitas Marketplace opened in 1981 and has cycled through a lineup of grocery anchors, including Alpha Beta, Lucky and Albertsons, before Kohl's moved in. The center sold for about $43 million in 2019, according to the North Coast Current. Whole Foods previously operated a downtown Encinitas store that opened in 2011 and closed in 2017, as Times of San Diego reported. Kohl's later announced its Encinitas store would close in early 2025, creating the vacancy that the new Whole Foods is expected to fill.
What comes next
If Whole Foods follows through on the plan, The San Diego Union-Tribune notes it would be one of three new Whole Foods locations planned across San Diego County, with additional sites eyed at Carmel Mountain Ranch and downtown San Diego. The paper also reports that the center's owner is planning a roughly $10 million facelift for Encinitas Marketplace, a renovation that could take about 24 months to complete. For now, neither Whole Foods nor the shopping center's owner has committed to a specific opening date.
What to watch
Locals tracking the comeback should keep an eye on building-permit filings, contractor activity and new storefront signage, which are usually the earliest public signs that a grocer is moving in. The property's online profile on CommercialCafe lists the Encinitas Marketplace address as 110 N. El Camino Real and shows the available suites. The Jones Lang LaSalle brochure also includes leasing contacts for anyone who wants a closer look at what is coming to the center.
