Dive Brief:
- Publix announced Tuesday it has executed a lease for a new store in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, according to an emailed press release.
- The store marks the grocer’s 12th announced location in the state.
- Publix’s expansion in Kentucky comes at a time when the grocery chain is pushing further north and expanding its store fleet outside its home state of Florida.
Dive Insight:
Publix’s new lease in Elizabethtown will house a 55,325-square-foot supermarket and an adjacent 3,300-square-foot Publix Liquors at The Shops at Pear Orchard.
Publix made its debut in Kentucky in January with the opening of its store in the Terra Crossing Shopping Center in Louisville. The nearly 56,000-square-foot store includes a drive-thru Publix Pharmacy and an adjacent 3,200-square-foot Publix Liquors. That opening also marked the company’s first Publix Liquors outside of Florida.
Kentucky is Publix’s eighth state of operation. The Terra Crossing store also marked the second location to feature Publix’s larger, more experience-focused store prototype.
Publix said it has not yet determined when it will arrive in Elizabethtown, which is about an hour south of Louisville.
Publix recently signed a lease for a new store in Owensboro, Kentucky, the Louisville Courier Journal reported. Other planned Publix locations slated for cities in the state include Louisville, Lexington and Walton.