Sustained growth in large-format grocery stores catering to specific regional and ethnic cuisines has been supercharged by both the diversifying demographics of the United States as well as a nationwide embrace of foodie culture.
But an increased presence of immigration authorities in growth hubs for these retailers, particularly in Los Angeles, has taken a bite out of customer bases and foot traffic.
“If anybody denies there’s an impact, that’s naive, because there is,” Avison Young principal and Director of Retail Market Intelligence Meghann Martindale said. “There’s an impact on the employee side, with staffing for these small businesses. But the other element…