These two grocery chains dominate with Triangle shoppers, new report shows

Kimberly Cataudella Tutuska
Khadejeh Nikouyeh/Knikouyeh@charlotteobserver.com

Walmart and Harris Teeter are dominating the Triangle’s competitive grocery scene, according to a report by Chain Store Guide released in recent weeks.

Chain Store Guide is a sales-tracking firm that works directly with grocery stores to determine which ones have the highest market share, or percentage of visits and purchases in the area. The report reflects 2023 sales, said North Carolina account manager Greg Boren.

In Raleigh’s CBSA (core based statistical area), Walmart had the highest market share in 2023, followed by Harris Teeter and then Food Lion — both North Carolina-based grocery stores.

And in Durham/Chapel Hill’s CBSA, Harris Teeter continues to have the highest market share, after dethroning Walmart (the longtime top Triangle grocer) in 2021.

The report splits the Triangle into the Raleigh area (which contains Wake, Johnston and Franklin counties) and the Durham/Chapel Hill area (which contains Durham, Orange, Chatham and Person counties).

Here’s what the grocery store market share reports by Chain Store Guide show.

Top grocery stores in Durham

▪ Harris Teeter dominated Durham/Chapel Hill with just about a quarter of the market share (24.82%). The 15 stores in the area brought in over half a billion dollars ($536 million) — about $100 million more than Walmart and Walmart Supercenters, according to the report.

In 2018, Harris Teeter took over eight Kroger locations across the Triangle, giving them a large enough boost in recent market share reports to dethrone Walmart, the longtime Durham-area grocery champ.

Still, Harris Teeter’s market share in the Durham/Chapel Hill region has been slowly declining year over year. The NC-based chain had 25.98% of the market in 2022 and 26.45% of the market in 2021.

▪ Walmart had the second-highest market share in the Durham/Chapel Hill area last year with over a fifth of the market (20.27%), which is also lower than in 2022 (21.09%) and 2021 (20.89%). These figures also include Walmart Supercenters, but they don’t include Walmart Neighborhood Markets. There is only one in the Triangle, but it’s in the Cary/Morrisville community (and outside of the Durham/Chapel Hill CBSA).

▪ Food Lion, another NC-based grocery chain, had the third-highest share of the market in the Durham/Chapel Hill region with 14.93% of the market. Their market share in the region has slowly increased year over year, up from 13.75% in 2022 and 14.12% in 2021.

Top grocery stores in Raleigh 2024

▪ In the Raleigh region, Walmart reigned supreme with more than a fifth of the market share (20.16%). Both Walmart and Walmart Supercenters brought in over $1.3 billion with the 18 stores in the area, according to the report.

▪ Harris Teeter (again in combination with now-closed Krogers storefronts) had the second-highest market share in the Raleigh area this year with nearly 18% of the market share. The 38 stores in the area brought in over $1.1 billion.

▪ Food Lion had the third-largest share of the market in the Raleigh region with nearly 15% of the market share. Their market share in the region has slowly increased year over year, up from 13.86% in 2022 and 14.3% in 2021.

Full report: Grocery stores’ market shares in Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill

The report is not publicly available online, as The News & Observer purchased the report and data from Chain Store Guide to further our understanding of our community and enrich future reporting.

We’ve provided all the stores and their percentage of the area’s market share from the recent report (showing 2023 data) below:

For the Raleigh area, which includes Wake, Johnston and Franklin counties:

  • Walmart (including Walmart Supercenter): 18 stores with 20.16% of the market share

  • Harris Teeter (including Kroger locations): 38 stores with 17.76% of the market share

  • Food Lion: 65 stores with 14.91% of the market share

  • Costco Wholesale: 3 stores with 6.68% of the market share

  • Target (including SuperTarget): 15 stores with 5.49% of the market share

  • Wegmans: 3 stores with 5.23% of the market share

  • Publix Super Market: 8 stores with 4.97% of the market share

  • Lowes Foods: 15 stores with 4.25% of the market share

  • Sam’s Club: 3 stores with 3.80% of the market share

  • BJ’s Wholesale Club: 4 stores with 3.21% of the market share

  • Lidl: 6 stores with 2.64% of the market share

  • Whole Foods Market: 4 stores with 2.55% of the market share

  • Aldi: 13 stores with 1.31% of the market share

  • Dollar General: 48 stores with 1.16% of the market share

  • Walmart Neighborhood Market: 3 stores with 0.95% of the market share

  • Trader Joe’s: 2 stores with 0.92% of the market share

  • Carlie C’s IGA: 7 stores with 0.71% of the market share

  • Dollar Tree: 37 stores with 0.64% of the market share

  • The Fresh Market: 3 stores with 0.58% of the market share

  • Family Dollar: 27 stores with 0.43% of the market share

For the Durham/Chapel Hill area, which includes Durham, Orange, Chatham and Person counties:

  • Harris Teeter (including Kroger): 15 stores with 24.82% of the market share

  • Walmart (including Walmart Supercenter): 6 stores with 20.27% of the market share

  • Food Lion: 22 stores with 14.93% of the market share

  • Target (including SuperTarget): 3 stores with 7.0% of the market share

  • Costco Wholesale: 1 store with 6.71% of the market share

  • Wegmans: 1 store with 5.25% of the market share

  • Whole Foods Market: 2 stores with 3.84% of the market share

  • Sam’s Club: 1 store with 3.82% of the market share

  • Weaver Street Market: 3 stores with 1.93% of the market share

  • Publix Super Market: 1 store with 1.87% of the market share

  • Dollar General: 23 stores with 1.67% of the market share

  • Trader Joe’s: 1 store with 1.39% of the market share

  • The Fresh Market: 2 stores with 1.16% of the market share

  • Sprouts Farmers Market: 1 store with 0.91% of the market share

  • Lowes Foods: 1 store with 0.86% of the market share

  • Dollar Tree: 14 stores with 0.73% of the market share

  • Family Dollar: 13 stores with 0.62% of the market share

  • Aldi: 2 stores with 0.61% of the market share

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