The Fresh Market
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Grocery store |
| Founded | March 5, 1982 in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States |
| Founder | Ray Berry, Beverly Berry |
| Headquarters | Greensboro , United States |
Area served | United States |
| Products | Grocery products |
| Owner | Cencosud (67%), Apollo Global Management (33%) |
| Website | thefreshmarket |
The Fresh Market, Inc. operates as a U.S.-based grocery store chain headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina.
History
The Fresh Market was established on March 5, 1982, in Greensboro, North Carolina, by founders Ray and Beverly Berry. The inaugural store occupied a former Bi-Rite location, with the founders intending to deliver a shopping environment inspired by traditional open-air European markets.
The company ventured westward by launching its initial California outlet in Roseville in October 2012. However, it withdrew from the Sacramento region by shutting down all three stores there in March 2014. In 2012, The Fresh Market took over four Rice Epicurean Markets stores based in Houston, renovating them before eventually closing these along with nine additional locations across Texas, Iowa, Missouri, and Kansas by May 2016.
Following an initial public offering on Nasdaq in November 2010 that raised $290 million under the ticker TFM, The Fresh Market transitioned to private ownership after being acquired by Apollo Global Management on April 27, 2016. This acquisition led to its removal from Nasdaq listings.
In March 2022, the company submitted an updated prospectus signaling intentions to re-enter the public market. Subsequently, in May 2022, Chilean retail conglomerate Cencosud purchased a controlling 67% interest in The Fresh Market, while Apollo maintained a 33% share.
Trademark disputes
Due to its widely used name, The Fresh Market has encountered several trademark conflicts. In 2005, a federal court ruled against the company in a dispute with Marsh Supermarkets, determining that the 'Fresh Market' trademark was too descriptive and therefore afforded limited protection. Additional conflicts arose involving “Fresh Market at Roth's” and Utah’s "A Fresh Market" in 2010, where the term was challenged as overly generic for trademark eligibility.
Nonetheless, in 2017 the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office officially granted trademark registration for “The Fresh Market.”
Awards
Between 2021 and 2023, The Fresh Market earned the distinction of "Best Grocery Store in America" for three consecutive years as recognized by USA Today.
External links
- Articles with short description
- Companies based in Greensboro, North Carolina
- Supermarkets of the United States
- Retail companies established in 1982
- 2010 initial public offerings
- Health food stores
- Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq
- 1982 establishments in North Carolina
- 2016 mergers and acquisitions
- Apollo Global Management companies