Trader Joe’s opened its doors in Riverdale on Friday. Another location will open in Holladay next week, and a Herriman official says the company will open in that city next year.
“It is a huge deal for us,” said Brandon Cooper, community development director in Riverdale. The new Trader Joe’s fills a vacant space, for one, “but more importantly, it just creates one more reason for people to come to Riverdale city.”
The grand opening on Friday at 4060 S. Riverdale Road, where a Shopko once operated, drew a large crowd, with shoppers snaking around the building waiting to get in. Once the doors opened, they swarmed inside while a marching band played in front of the store. Riverdale leaders announced last December that Trader Joe’s would be coming to Riverdale Road, a busy commercial corridor serving Weber and Davis counties.
“It’s got a cult following. I think it’s one of those brands that people have really identified with,” said Cooper. “Despite the fact that they just offer simple groceries, they’ve done it in a way that people really, really love.”
Sarah Christensen of Morgan was on hand with her husband, Andrew Christensen. She didn’t know Friday was the grand opening of the Riverdale store, and her husband brought her as a surprise, knowing how much she likes the store.
“I’ll be here all the time. This is going to be my new Disneyland. So excited,” she said.
Myles Bradshaw, the store captain in Ogden, was decked out in a flowery shirt at Friday’s grand opening, like many other employees. He attributed the store’s popularity to a range of things.
“It’s everything. We have an amazing team, we have amazing products,” he said.
Whatever it is, Riverdale isn’t the only place where Trader Joe’s mania holds sway.
The Trader Joe’s website says a location in Holladay at 1895 E. Rodeo Walk Drive will open on Oct. 31, and construction moves ahead on a new location in Herriman off the northwest corner of Mountain View Corridor and 13400 South. The new commercial development coming together at the bustling Herriman intersection will also include a Target.
LaFollette has worked for the city of Herriman for around eight years, he said, “and in my time here, the most wished-for businesses among Herriman residents are Trader Joe’s and Target. It’s working out nicely that both of those businesses have chosen to locate basically at the same site.”
The Herriman Trader Joe’s, which would become the eighth in Utah, is to open sometime in 2026, LaFollette said, but company officials haven’t pinpointed a date.
In Logan, officials dream of Trader Joe’s. Kirk Jensen, economic development director for the city, said Trader Joe’s fans recently affixed a Trader Joe’s sign to a Logan building they think would be a good site for the business. They were apparently aiming to build excitement and promote the cause of luring the business to the city.
“It was just a spoof,” Jensen said. “We’ve confirmed that Trader Joe’s has no immediate plans to come to Logan.”
Still, many have clamored for years for a Trader Joe’s in Logan, he said. “That fervor has increased significantly in the last year or two ... but there’s just no indication from Trader Joe’s that they have immediate plans to come to Logan,” he said.
Trader Joe’s can have a big economic impact in the locales where it operates, apparently. Cooper has heard anecdotal reports that the traffic that Trader Joe’s locations initially spur when they open causes a 10% to 15% boost in activity at nearby businesses, at least initially. For many Trader Joe’s shoppers, though — crowding the aisles and creating frequent traffic jams at Friday’s opening in Riverdale — it’s about the distinctive food products on offer.
“You can find some unique items here that you can’t find at any other store,” said Tim Mikesell of Ogden, on hand for Friday’s grand opening.