Fresh Market to open in Smithtown

Upscale food retailer The Fresh Market plans to open a Smithtown store, its second on Long Island. The new 24,099-square-foot location is expected to open in late 2015.

The North Carolina-based specialty grocery chain has signed a lease at the Branch Plaza shopping center, 126 E. Main St. in Smithtown. It will be the company's fifth store in the state. Each store employs about 90 people.

The chain opened its first Long Island store in November 2013 in a 25,000-square-foot space in the high-end Woodbury Common shopping center on Jericho Turnpike in Woodbury.

"We are always on the lookout for markets where shoppers appreciate high-quality food and outstanding customer service, and Long Island, specifically Smithtown, is just such a place," said Drewry Sackett, The Fresh Market's public relations and community relations manager. "With the recent opening of our Woodbury store last year, we have found that the Long Island community appreciates our unique shopping experience, and we look forward to providing the same experience to the Smithtown community."

Founded in 1982, The Fresh Market's stores are designed to convey the atmosphere of a European market, featuring a butcher shop, bakery, produce and floral stands and a delicatessen. The publicly traded company operates 164 stores in 27 states across the United States.