Sign going up at local Trader Joe’s
Grocer hiring for multiple positions at new location
Signs are up on a new building and staffing is in full swing as Trader Joe’s moves closer to opening its first Chattanooga store as early as late next month.
On Monday, employees were hauling supplies into the store that’s located at 2111 Gunbarrel Road at the corner of one of the main entrances into Hamilton Place mall.
The grocer’s familiar red-lettered signage started going up on the exterior of the store about a week ago. Also, the company began advertising this month for so-called “crew members,” who typically work in non-manager positions.
The company declined comment Monday, though a post on its website noted that Trader Joe’s is looking for workers to operate cash registers, bag groceries, stock shelves and help customers.
“If you have a passion for people and a fervor for food, we’d love to meet you,” said the post. “We can teach you the rest.”
Pay was put between $12 to $16 per hour. Last month, the grocery store began hiring for so-called “mates,” or assistant store managers, at $20 to $25 per hour.
When Trader Joe’s opens, it will become the third specialty grocer within a two-mile strip of Gunbarrel.
The Fresh Market at 2288 Gunbarrel Road is located at The Overlook at Hamilton Place near Best Buy. Meanwhile, Whole Foods opened a second Chattanooga store at 1814 Gunbarrel Road at Gunbarrel Pointe late last year, moving into the site of the former Earth Fare store after that grocer filed for bankruptcy.
Chattanoogan Chuck Pruett, who operates Pruett’s Market on Signal Mountain and opened the Greenlife Grocery specialty grocer in 1999 in North Chattanooga before selling it to Whole Foods, said there’s room for all three stores on Gunbarrel.
“They fill a different niche,” he said.
Trader Joe’s has “an incredibly strong” private label program, Pruett said.
“They carry items you can’t find in other grocery stores,” he said. “That’s their strength.”
Pruett said Trader Joe’s tries to find the best products in a category and a manufacturer which will make it for the grocer.
“They’re super-strong with their own brands,” he said.
The Fresh Market is more gourmet and focused on high-end goods, Pruett said.
Whole Foods specializes in organic and natural foods, he said.
In none of the three stores can shoppers find everything they need, Pruett said.
In terms of hiring new employees, he predicted it will be challenging for Trader Joe’s.
“It’s tougher than I’ve ever seen,” Pruett said.
Trader Joe’s already has stores in Knoxville, Nashville, and Germantown, outside Memphis, in Tennessee.
Last November, the specialty grocer confirmed it was working toward a store in Chattanooga. Construction later began at the 2111 Gunbarrel Road site, a location that formerly held the AAA Chattanooga insurance agency just outside of mall.
Trader Joe’s Public Relations Manager Kenya Friend-Daniel said in an earlier email that “we are excited to be bringing a store to Chattanooga.”
In 2017, a survey of 1,100 people by the downtown nonprofit redevelopment group River City Co. showed that a Trader Joe’s market was among those retailers most desired in Chattanooga. Clothing retailer Urban Outfitters was the other.