Is this storefront location ever going to make it? That’s what shoppers are wondering after yet another turnover at 2480 Mt. Vernon Road as the Lidl Grocery Store announced that its Dunwoody location will close on Feb. 19.
A statement by Lidl U.S.spokesperson Chandler Ebeier Spivey confirmed the closing.
“After a thorough review of our store network, we made the difficult decision to close the Dunwoody store on February 19,” Spivey said. “This was an underperforming location that was selected under our very early real estate criteria that we have since optimized. This strategic decision will allow us to focus on the successful growing store network we have in the Atlanta area.”
Spivey said the company is working with existing employees and that every ”team member has been offered a position with Lidl at another store within our store network.”
This is the fifth time that the anchor tenant in the Mount Vernon Shopping Center has been shuttered. It was once a Harris Teeter, then an Ace Hardware, followed by a Hollywood Feed, Sprouts Grocery, and most recently a Lidl. Sprouts was open from 2014-2018 before disappointing sales and the looming end of the five-year lease prompted its closure. Lidl opened in August 2020 to great fanfare, but regular shoppers said they noticed that the store’s business had never been robust.
“I think it’s really sad, but not surprising,” said Dunwoody resident Dana Gaines. “Adli, Lidl and Trader Joe’s were my go-to stores. I never go to Publix or Kroger unless I have to because the prices are so high.”
What happens to this location is unknown, but if social media contributors have their way, a Trader Joe’s will take over. However, the California-based company has been notoriously silent as to future store locations. It already has two stores nearby – one in Sandy Springs and another in Peachtree Corners.
This is a developing story. Check back for more updates.