Store opens Friday morning to crowd of hundreds
Columbians have a shorter drive to pick up their Two-Buck Chuck and other Trader Joe’s favorites, and their excitement was palpable this weekend.
Hundreds gathered outside the new store for its grand opening Friday morning, and even by Saturday afternoon, the interest hadn’t waned much.
Police directed traffic, cars backed up onto Forest Drive, customers jaywalked with bags in tow and neighboring businesses and streets were slammed with folks looking for parking.
Inside, checkout lines meandered, employees donned leis and customers weaved through crowded aisles as they perused the store’s famously inexpensive offerings of cheeses, meats, frozen foods and other mostly organic options.
The store took a USC-centric approach for decor, with murals of cows playing football in Williams-Brice Stadium, McKissick Museum adorned with fork-and-knife banners and other campus icons.
The new location is the chain’s third in South Carolina, with stores in Greenville and Mount Pleasant, and follows close behind Whole Foods Market, which opened on Fort Jackson Boulevard last year.
Trader Joe’s is open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. at 4516 Forest Drive.