By Ellis Mnyandu
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFMI.O: Quote, Profile, Research) , the top U.S. natural and organic food grocer, expects to sign the lease for its first London flagship store before the end of the year, a company executive said on Wednesday.
Jim Sud, executive vice president of growth and business development, told Reuters the grocer was scouring for new locations that could accommodate a large Whole Foods store in London.
"I'm hopeful that over the next few months we'll be announcing that we've signed a lease to do a large store in London," he said in an interview.
Asked if the retailer aimed to have the lease in place before the end of the year, Sud said: "That's my goal, certainly yes."
Whole Foods, which was founded 25 years ago, is aggressively expanding into new markets to capitalize on the growing appeal of food touted as free of pesticides, preservatives and other additives.
A little over a year ago, Whole Foods -- which on Thursday unveils its largest ever store in Austin, Texas -- bought seven small-sized stores of British rival Fresh & Wild Holdings Ltd, setting up a base for its first foray into the United Kingdom.
According to Sud, the acquisition is providing extensive insights into the British market but as in New York, finding good real estate in London took time.
"We're patient, we're disciplined. It's a challenge, but I'm confident we will be able to find something in the 30,000-50,000 square-feet range, which will enable us to really put our best foot forward over there."
Compared with the flourishing U.S market, analysts say the British natural and organic food market lies largely untapped in the fastest growing segment of food retailing, with an estimated global value of $22 billion.
Most U.K. supermarket chains, including J. Sainsbury Plc (SBRY.L: Quote, Profile, Research) and Tesco Plc (TSCO.L: Quote, Profile, Research) , feature a limited assortment of organic foods compared with Whole Foods which has made the natural and organic food scene a highly lucrative niche.
Signing a lease for its London store would be a major boost for Whole Foods as some analysts had previously expressed concern that London's expensive real estate market could hinder the replication of Whole Foods' traditional larger store format.
Chef2Chef News Desk