GreenWise Gets In on Ground Floor of New Expansion Opportunity

Publix Super Markets is open to new types of expansion opportunities for its GreenWise Market format judging from a first-of-its-kind location in downtown Fort Lauderdale, Florida, that was years in the making.

Publix opened a nearly 28,000-square-foot GreenWise Market on the ground floor of The Main Las Olas, a 1.4 million square foot mixed use development that derives its name from Las Olas Boulevard, a short stretch of road that extends eastward from downtown Fort Lauderdale to the Atlantic Ocean.

Publix now operates a total of eight GreenWise stores, but the location at The Main Las Olas location is a first of its type in a city center location as part of a larger development encompassing 3 acres.

“We took all of the things our customers love about GreenWise Market and put them in a centralized downtown location. We look forward to sharing our unique atmosphere and products with our customers who live and work in this busy urban neighborhood,” said Publix President Kevin Murphy.

Until recently, downtown Fort Lauderdale had relatively few food shopping options. An existing Publix store is a half mile away from the new GreenWise store and a 47,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market that opened last October is a mile and a half away.

The new location should give Publix an indication of whether its natural and organic concept is a good fit for urban mixed use projects should similar opportunities arise. The developers of The Main Las Olas certainly have high expectations for GreenWise, featuring the store prominently as one of the property’s key amenities.

“Spanning a full city block bordering 201 E. Las Olas and SE 3rd Avenue in downtown Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, the mixed-use project features sophisticated Class A offices to the south and chic residences to the north, both connected by numerous dining and entertainment options as well as a GreenWise organic grocer on the ground floor,” is how developers Stiles and Shorenstein Properties LLC described a project that has a 25 story office tower and a 27 story tower with apartments branded as Novo Las Olas.

Marketing materials for the apartments, with rents ranging from $1,705 for a 605-square-foot, one-bedroom unit to $4,410 for the largest, three-bedroom, 1,405-square-foot unit, also sing the praises of GreenWise.

“Our apartments offer immediate access to an on-site GreenWise Market (leave your car keys and umbrella home), which gives you access to ready-made meals for take-out or all the ingredients to create a feast,” is the description found in leasing materials. “Entertaining? With the GreenWise Market downstairs you can offer more choices than a restaurant, without the wait list!”

If Publix decides to pursue expansion for GreenWise in other urban mixed use projects it will need to plan far in advance. Long lead times are common with major urban real estate developments and the The Main Las Olas project was roughly five years in the making.