For about a year, rumors were circulating that Wegmans was looking at building a supermarket at the Annapolis mall if and when Sears woudl eventually vacate the space. Well, we have learned that that deal is off the books and the Grocery Wars have started in Annapolis with the battleground being the Riva Road corridor where Wegmans will be taking on Giant Food and Whole Foods with a new supermarket located directly across the street from both.

We have learned that Wegmans is in the process of finalizing a deal for the former AT&T building (formerly USinternetworking) on Riva Road. The parcel which has sat vacant (more or less) for several years is an ideal location for the supermarket. It offers plenty of parking, and perhaps one of the most valuable assets is the visibility to Route 50 which runs along the rear property line.

Wegmans is a regional supermarket chain with 97 stores: 46 in New York, 17 in Pennsylvania, 9 in New Jersey, 11 in Virginia, 8 in Maryland, and 6 in Massachusetts. It is one of the largest private companies in the U.S. with more than 48,000 employees and 2017 sales in excess of $8.7 billion dollars.

Giant operates 166 supermarkets in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and the District of Columbia, and employs approximately 20,000. In 1998 Giant was purchased by Dutch conglomerate Royal Ahold.

Whole Foods Market has 479 locations in the US, Canada and the UK. They employ 91,000 people and are now (as of June 2017) wholly owned by Amazon.

With the entry of Wegmans to the Annapolis market, it seems that the chances of a Lidl building their store across from the Bay Ridge Giant may wither away.

Wegmans is revered among its customers and is known for their quality and affordable store-brand merchandise that rivals brand name products. It has created a loyal following that will drive reasonable distances to grocery shop. The nearest Wegmans to Annapolis is in Gambrills. However, the Annapolis area is rife with supermarkets, two Giant Food store, two Safeways, a Shoppers Food Warehouse, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, locally owned Graul’s, The Fresh Market, as well as several smaller ethnic and mini-markets.

The exact timing of any opening has yet to be determined, but sources have told us that a spring opening is not out of the question.

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