Publix will open its newest Brunswick County store on October 28 at 7 a.m., bringing a 46,791-square-foot supermarket to 9770 Ocean Highway West in Calabash and roughly 140 jobs to the area. The store will anchor The Commons at Carolina Shores and become the third operating Publix in Brunswick County, joining existing locations in Ocean Isle Beach and Oak Island.
The opening date and hiring figure come from a Publix news release detailed by the Charlotte Observer, which reported that Jared Glover said Publix is excited to welcome customers to its new Calabash store. Publix now operates 1,444 stores across Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Kentucky, according to the same report, and the company has another Brunswick County store under construction in Leland.
The Calabash store will not be isolated for long. Walmart submitted plans in May 2024 for a store and gas station on more than 20 acres next to the Publix site, and that Supercenter was initially set to open October 7, 2026, before its grand opening was postponed, per the Observer's reporting. Separately, the Town of Carolina Shores Board of Commissioners approved a related Walmart Supercenter project in June 2024 authorizing a 171,000-square-foot store with a gas station and drive-thru pharmacy on an approximately 38-acre site along U.S. 17, according to a Facebook post tracking the project's municipal approval.
A Grocery Chain Betting Big on Southern Brunswick County
The Calabash opening is part of broader retail development along U.S. 17. Branch Properties is the developer behind Leland Village. By August 2026, the center was 93% leased and had signed 11 new tenants, including First Watch and Handel's Ice Cream, according to WilmingtonBiz.
The new Publix is set to open in Calabash.
Publix continues to expand its North Carolina footprint, with the Calabash store adding to its presence in the state.
Development Along U.S. 17
Retail development is expanding along U.S. 17 in southern Brunswick County, with Publix and Walmart projects adding to the corridor's commercial activity.
For now, the immediate story on U.S. 17 is retail competition. With Publix set to open October 28 and the neighboring Walmart Supercenter's grand opening postponed after its original October 7 target date, Brunswick County shoppers are watching to see which big-box grocer opens its doors to the border corridor first.
