Major grocer on Hilton Head shutting its doors. Here’s where and when
Hilton Head Island and Beaufort County’s only Whole Foods Market will permanently close, laying off 90 employees and forcing shoppers to go to Savannah for the nearest location.
An employee at the store confirmed it would close Aug. 7, but managers declined to comment further and referred an Island Packet reporter to a press email.
The closure and layoffs, according to the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce, come 10 years after the store replaced Piggly Wiggly in July 2014. It is unknown why the store closed; however, worker shortages have recently impacted local businesses. The state issued the notice of the layoffs in the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act report, triggered by the termination of 50 or more employees.
It is also unknown what will happen to the 30,000-square-foot building at the Plaza at Shelter Cove off William Hilton Parkway once it closes.
Whole Foods Market is an upscale grocery store known for selling natural and organic products. The Hilton Head location featured a coffee bar, craft beer pouring station, and eat-in and takeout meals. It also has an Amazon locker, which Google shows as “temporarily closed.”
