Harps Coming to West Fork?
by March 30, 2012 4:43 pm 88 views
Harps Food Stores Inc. is doing prep work for a possible new store in West Fork as part of an aggressive expansion effort.
J. Max Van Hoose, Harps’ vice president of store planning, said the company has some property under contract on Arkansas Highway 176 east of Interstate 540 near the school complex, and is gathering information to present to the city’s planning commission.
Michael Landa, the commission’s chairman, confirmed Springdale-based Harps is doing soil testing at the site.
Van Hoose said the store will likely be similar to others in Northwest Arkansas, which are about 32,000 SF.
As for why Harps is looking at a West Fork location, Van Hoose said simply, “We’re always looking for areas to grow. Northwest Arkansas is growing, and that includes West Fork.”
Employee-owned Harps has 65 stores in Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri.
The company opened a Jonesboro store in January, Van Hoose said, and will open another outside Joplin this month. A Bald Knob location will open in May, and a store in Grove, Okla., will open in June to replace an existing facility.
The grocery chain also expects to start work on a new store in Elkins in coming months that also will replace an existing store. And it anticipates putting a new store in Haskell, although it hasn’t finalized purchase of the property, Van Hoose said.