With the recent anouncement of an upcoming Yes! Organic Market location in the U Street Corridor, many of you have expressed concern on how this would impact Ellwood Thompson's resolve to open a Columbia Heights location.  We assumed there would be very little impact as the retail corridor around the Columbia Heights Metro serves as a distinct, separate market and it is clear that the demand for a specialty, organic market in this neighborhood is very high.  Yes! Organic is also small-scaled compared to Ellwood Thompson's at only 5,000 square feet.  Ellwood Thompson's is proposing a Columbia Heights location that is triple the size.

It is refreshing to have a company show so much interest in bringing a specialty grocer to Columbia Heights.  The fact that the CEO of Ellwood Thompson's made numerous trips to Columbia Heights to get a first-hand sense of the vibe of this neighborhood is a testament to the kind of company this is.  The tables are now turned.  Rather than the community joining forces with DC USA developers to lure a stubborn retailer like Whole Foods Market or Trader Joe's to Columbia Heights, we have a retailer who is committed to the neighborhood and wants  to bring a much needed specialty grocer to DC USA.  At this point, the ball is in the developer's court.  Whether Columbia Heights will get an Ellwood Thompson's or not is now up to Grid Properties.

We recently had a chance to speak with Ryan Youngman, CEO of Ellwood Thompson's.  He expressed a strong desire to bring his environmentally conscience natural market concept to Columbia Heights.  Ellwood Thompson's was established in 1989.  The current owner, Rick Hood, is also one of the original founders of the natural grocer.  Ellwood Thompson's started out as a small-scale city market in an up-and-coming area of Richmond over a decade ago.  Since then, it has grown to become the largest and most successful natural market in Richmond.  Ryan Youngman came to run Ellwood Thomson's after years of working for Whole Foods Market.

We just received word from Ryan Youngman, the CEO of Ellwood Thompson's Local Market, that his company is scoping out retail space in the Columbia Heights neighborhood.  This is extremely great news for those of us who were interested in Whole Foods Market, Trader Joes, and the like.  Ellwood Thompson's is a natural market based in Richmond, Virginia.  They offer the quality, organic products that you would find at Whole Foods but with a smaller, more intimate setting of Trader Joe's.  Without further ado, here is what CEO Ryan Youngman had to say about his company and his interest in Columbia Heights: