Henry's Farmers Market
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Grocery retail |
| Founded | 1943 |
| Founder | Henry Boney and family |
| Defunct | 2013 |
| Fate | Integrated into Sprouts Farmers Market |
| Headquarters | La Mesa, California , United States |
Area served | Southern California, Northern California, United States |
| Products | Natural and organic foods |
Number of employees | 7000+ (2011) |
Henry's Farmers Market—also referred to as Boney’s Market or simply Henry's—was a grocery retail chain based in La Mesa, California. Beginning in 2011, it gradually integrated into the Sprouts Farmers Market brand, with full consolidation completed by mid-2013.
History
Originally specializing in natural and organic foods, Henry’s Farmers Market was founded in 1943 when Henry Boney and his family launched a fruit stand on a corner in San Diego, starting their venture with a single truckload of peaches. Over the subsequent decades, this modest fruit stand evolved into a regional grocery store chain.
By 1999, the Henry's chain operated 24 stores—23 located in Southern California and one in Northern California—when it was purchased by Wild Oats Markets. Following this acquisition, the Boney family initiated a new concept, opening the first Sprouts Farmers Market store in Chandler, Arizona in 2002.
In August 2007, after merging with Wild Oats, Whole Foods Market acquired the company, including all Henry's Farmers Market locations. However, just two months later, Whole Foods divested 35 Henry's Farmers Market and Sun Harvest Market stores to a subsidiary of Los Angeles-based grocer Smart & Final for $166 million (approximately $Template:Format price adjusted for inflation). Earlier that year, Smart & Final itself had been acquired by private equity firm Apollo Management.
In December 2010, Henry's announced intentions to open its inaugural store in Idaho, planned for downtown Boise in 2011. Yet within a week, those plans were put on hold.
Early in 2011, Apollo Management acquired Sprouts Farmers Market—the Boney family’s second grocery venture—and subsequently revealed plans to merge Sprouts with Henry's Farmers Market. The combined entity operated under the Sprouts Farmers Market name and comprised 98 stores employing over 7,000 staff members by the time the merger finalized in the second quarter of 2011.