Trader Joe’s Coming to Evans
Ahoy, CSRA! Trader Joe’s is sailing into Evans, Georgia!!
It’s official.
The Columbia County Board of Commissioners confirmed it is working with the grocery chain to identify and secure a location within Evans, though a timeline and specific site have not yet been announced.
“We recognize the high level of community enthusiasm for this brand and remain committed to fostering an economic environment that attracts top-tier retail partners to Columbia County,” the board said in a statement. The company confirmed the news to multiple Augusta area outlets as well.
Currently, Georgia is home to eight Trader Joe’s locations — Alpharetta, Athens, Atlanta, Marietta, Norcross, Peachtree City, Roswell, and Sandy Springs — with a ninth recently announced in Johns Creek. For now, the closest drive for CSRA shoppers remains Columbia, South Carolina.
Reader, this blogger has officially lost her mind.
I fell in love with Trader Joe’s back when I lived in Louisville and later in Milwaukee. I missed it so much during my Champaign years, and I was genuinely shocked (and a little heartbroken) to learn it wasn’t in Augusta when Isaac and I moved here.
So what’s the big deal?
I’m glad you asked!
The company, established in 1967, is known for its unique private-label products rather than the overwhelming variety you’d find on traditional grocery store shelves. Its assortments are intentionally curated, helping eliminate the “paradox of choice” — that moment when staring down six different brands of penne pasta somehow makes picking one feel impossible.
There are no coupons.
There are no membership cards.
And yet people keep coming back for more.
Maybe it’s the prices. By focusing heavily on private labels, Trader Joe’s avoids many of the costs traditional grocers incur competing for national brands — savings they can pass along to shoppers.
It could be due to the quirky names of its ever-changing product lines, from Dill-icious Cream Cheese Spread to Scandinavian Swimmers (Swedish Fish) to Teeny Tiny Avocados.
Or the insanely friendly employees in Hawaiian shirts who have a story, quip, or question about everything that lands in your cart.
How does Trader Joe’s decide where to open?
In a 2024 episode of “Inside Trader Joe’s,” the company’s VP of Marketing, Matt Sloan, shared the a look at the decision-making process. And no, it’s not just based on the number of people in Facebook groups begging for the company to open in their community.
According to Sloan, the company looks first for areas with strong population density or a large trade area where shoppers are willing to travel for a TJ’s run.
“We’re going to really only be able to grow when we have places and people ready,” Sloan said. “People by way of crew, and even people by way of customers.”
Ease of accessibility is another major factor.
“We have a list of criteria, and the criteria are really about access and ease of getting into and out of, and the flow of traffic patterns, again, traffic being driven by those numbers of people,” Sloan said.
Now, as Evans prepares to open the Augusta area’s first Trader Joe’s, we’re all waiting to hear where the county and chain agree to break ground.
Personally? I’d love to see it land at Evans Towne Center — but honestly, I will drive to any corner of the CSRA for Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese, Potato Latkes (Chanukah and year-round), and those dangerously good Crispy Crunchy Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Does this sound like an unhinged love letter to a store?
Probably.
Do I care?
Not at all.
