Wal-Mart will open its newest Supercenter off York Road in Cockeysville today, an expansion of its older Hunt Valley store that Baltimore County business watchers say will put pressure on area grocery stores.
The opening of new Wal-Mart stores, especially Supercenters, is often met with angst and concern by local businesses, but the stores often provide a benefit to the area, said Steven Restivo, director of corporate affairs for Wal-Mart?s Northeast region.
“The common criticism is that we drop a store in and other businesses start going out,” Restivo said. “In a lot of communities, the opposite is true, because we become an anchor for further development. They take advantage of the foot traffic our store generates.”
The 240,000-square-foot center includes a full supermarket and replaces the Hunt Valley Wal-Mart, which opened several miles up York Road in 1999. The center has been in the works for several years. It took about 10 months to build, five weeks to stock, and will employ more than 500, including all of the Hunt Valley store’s 200 employees.
Although the replacement of the Hunt Valley store might not change much for local retailers, the addition of a grocery store with Wal-Mart?s low prices might push existing stores hard, said Peirce MacGill, revitalization specialist with the Baltimore County Department of Economic Development.
Restivo said the Cockeysville Supercenter shares features with Wal-Mart?s stores around the country, but has at least one modification to challenge local businesses. It boasts a larger-than-usual garden section, including a drive-through lane allowing customers to buy yard items without getting out of their cars. The department is built to compete with the nearby Valley View Farms, an icon of the local business landscape, Restivo said.
But Wal-Mart plans to scale back its commitment to store expansion nationwide and expects slower sales growth, Chief Financial Officer Tom Schoewe told investors Tuesday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
