Shoppers turn out in droves
to check out
grocery devoted to healthy foods

Economic doldrums?

Don’t tell that to Doug Sanders.

The president and chief operating officer of Sprouts Farmers Market has kept plenty busy the past few months, making constant forays from his home in Scottsdale, Ariz., to California to watch over a series of store openings for the booming chain.

This week found him in Culver City, as the company opened its doors Wednesday, June 23 on its second store in the greater Los Angeles area. The only two concerns Sanders expressed as he stood outside the market — located in the former Circuit City building at the intersection of Sepulveda Boulevard and Slauson Avenue — were a shortage of parking for the onslaught of shoppers, and having to eventually leave Culver City’s temperate climate for the searing heat back home.

“It’s been a great opening. We had about 50, 60 people standing at the door at 7 o’clock this morning,” said Sanders, who has been with the company since its founding in 2002, the past four years in his present position. “The customers’ reaction to the store has been very positive. … We couldn’t be happier.”

That a chain with the motto “Healthy Living For Less” would find Culver City an ideal fit for its wares is hardly a surprise. From its many green initiatives to its likewise omnipresent organic restaurants, “The Heart of Screenland” would seem to be a logical choice to set up shop.

Factor in the availability of a vacant, ideal-sized storefront at one of the city’s busiest intersections, and Sanders conceded it was essentially a no-brainer when the company was scouting locations to add what would become the 51st store in its portfolio, joining one in Torrance as the lone two properties in Los Angeles County. It’s also the first Sprouts Farmers Market that is LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmentally Design) certified, based on criteria developed by the U.S. Green Building Council.

“California’s a big piece of our growth plan over the next several years,” said Sanders, who earlier this month presided over an opening in Thousand Oaks, and later this year will return to Los Angeles County when a Pasadena location opens its doors. “This is the ninth store we’re opening this year. … Obviously our business is good. The model is working really well. Healthy eating has really become a trend.”

Unfortunately in Culver City, another trend has been the lack of commercial development in the wake of the sagging economy. So in that sense, Sprouts Farmers Market is actually reversing recent history, to the delight of at least one local business leader.

“I look at Sprouts as a magnet to bring more consumers to Culver City!” said Culver City Chamber of Commerce President Steve Rose in an e-mail to the News. “A magnet is good for business of all kinds, by exposing the excitement of Culver City as a retail destination.

“Sprouts will attract a consumer that is interested in a healthy lifestyle, one that is encouraged by most businesses in Culver City.”