Chesterfield County is getting its first Whole Foods Market next month, with the grocery chain set to open a 37,636-square-foot store at 1051 Steam Ave. in Midlothian on November 19 at 8 a.m. The new location will stock more than 390 local products from Virginia and neighboring states and will keep regular hours of 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily once it's up and running.
The announcement comes via a Whole Foods Market news release, which confirmed the store will be led by Store Team Leader India Lawal. It marks the third Whole Foods location in the greater Richmond area and the 17th in Virginia overall, following stores in West Broad Village in Henrico and Sauer Center in Richmond, according to RichmondBizSense. The Henrico store, the region's first, opened in western Henrico in September 2007, per Richmond.com.
What's on the Shelves, Local Flavor Included
Per WebWire, the Midlothian store will lean heavily into local sourcing, with shelves stocked by Don Sebastián salsas, cookies from Whisked by Jenna, soap from Chagrin Valley Soap & Salve Company and packaged coffee from Blanchard's Coffee Roasting Co. Shoppers can also expect Blue Ridge Bucha kombucha, crackers from Firehook Artisan Baked Crackers and Savannah Grace Southern Snacks, and charcuterie from Naturalissima.
The bakery will turn out berry chantilly cake, brown butter cookies, brown sugar apple pie, a cinnamon roll rice crispy treat and a holiday cookie box, while the seafood counter will carry smoked salmon from Ivy City Smokehouse and crab cake bases from Jimmy's Famous Seafood. The store's fresh oyster and fish assortment will vary daily, and the seafood is described as sustainable wild-caught or responsibly farmed. Meat offerings include chicken from LaBelle Patrimoine Heritage Chicken, with store policy requiring animals be raised with no antibiotics ever. The store also plans more than 270 craft beers and ciders and 350 wines, including local pours from Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, The Virginia Beer Co. and Potter's Craft Cider.
Opening-Day Perks and Prepared Foods
Opening-morning customers will get samples from local and national suppliers, and the first 300 people in line will walk away with a limited-edition Midlothian tote bag and a Secret Saver coupon worth up to $100 in savings, according to the Whole Foods Market release. Grocery pickup will be available shortly after the doors open, and shoppers can pay in-store using either the Whole Foods Market or Amazon app.
For those looking to eat on-site, the store will feature hot food and salad bars, pizza, gourmet sandwiches and sushi rolled fresh daily by Genji. Produce will include certified organic, conventional and Sourced for Good options, with fresh produce and floral items required to meet the chain's pollinator health policy. The design itself nods to the region's history: according to WRIC, the building will blend Virginia's Colonial architectural heritage with modern touches, using locally sourced wood, stone and brick.
Community Giving and a Crowded Grocery Field
Whole Foods Market is marking the opening with a food and monetary donation to Community Access & Supportive Services, which already makes regular surplus food pickups from local Whole Foods stores and previously received a refrigerated van through the company's Nourishing Our Neighborhoods program. That program, launched in 2020 to expand food-rescue capacity nationwide, funds vehicles each capable of rescuing 20,000 pounds of food weekly, the company says.
The Midlothian debut lands in a Richmond grocery market where competition is fierce. Non-traditional retailers now account for more than 54% of food and household-goods spending across the region, and the local food and grocery market is valued at roughly $4.88 billion annually, according to a report from WTVR. Walmart currently leads all Richmond-area food retailers with an estimated $847.4 million in annual sales across 17 stores, while Kroger tops traditional supermarkets with about $732.3 million in sales at 18 locations, per the same report.
Jobs and What's Still Unclear
Whole Foods is also staffing up ahead of the opening. Career listings show the chain recruiting for a part-time prepared foods cook position with wages ranging from $17.50 to $30.20 an hour depending on experience, and a separate part-time prepared foods team member role paying $17.00 to $24.40 an hour that requires no prior retail experience.
Not every detail has been nailed down publicly. The amount of Whole Foods' monetary donation to Community Access & Supportive Services hasn't been disclosed, and it remains unclear whether a previously reported second-quarter 2027 opening timeline tied to the broader Midlothian Depot development applies to the shopping center as a whole rather than the grocery store itself, which is now confirmed for next month.
