These 5 States Are Getting a Hy-Vee

Anyone who’s stepped into a Hy-Vee grocery store knows the scent of freshly made donuts and the plentiful fresh produce reliably available. For those who don’t have a Hy-Vee near them, that may be changing.

Hy-Vee is introducing new locations, though exact dates and locations are still a bit unclear. It is a privately owned company, and therefore, some of the news and insights about its plans may not be readily available. For those living in any of the grocery’s proposed locations, though, this is great news.

Check out the latest news on Hy-Vee’s newest locations throughout the U.S., and get excited to start saving more on groceries.

One of the company's most prominent recent decisions is the acquisition of Strack & Van Til Food Market, a chain that operates throughout Northwest Indiana. Hy-Vee isn’t changing those locations' names, but it will take over ownership of the company as it moves into the Indiana region.

Strack & Van Til has a long history in the area, dating back to 1930. Both companies are highly customer-centric, which is good news for the community.

Also, in Indiana, Hy-Vee will be opening two locations under its own branded name at some point in 2024. The two locations are in Zionsville and Fishers, both of which are suburbs of Indianapolis.

The details are limited since the organization has slowed its expansion in recent months. Still, they are finalizing construction timelines for both locations.

Hy-Vee just opened two locations in Wisconsin this year. Those locations include Janesville and Oregon, Wisconsin.

Both of these locations opened in February of 2024. With the addition of these two locations, Hy-Vee will have eight total stores in Wisconsin alone.

The privately owned grocer is somewhat tight-lipped about where it plans to open its next locations and the timeline for doing so. However, company leadership stated in 2022 that it planned to begin expanding at a faster rate (though inflation seems to have slowed that process somewhat).

Its target areas include Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alabama. Actual locations and opening date expectations are somewhat tentative.

Hy-Vee continues to move towards expansion, but the grocer is currently only in eight states. Those states include Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. Indiana will be the company’s ninth state once those stores open.

The company has noted several times in recent years that it hopes to expand into new markets and further into states with existing locations.

Hy-Vee was launched in 1930 by Charles L. Hyde and David M. Vredenburg (the H- and V- represent the company’s name). Its goal from the very start was to offer “good merchandise, appreciative service, and low prices.” These are some of the values the company continues to promise its customers today.

The first Hy-Vee location opened in Beaconsfield, Iowa. However, only two weeks after the lease was signed, the stock market crashed leading to the Great Depression and almost costing the owners just about everything. 

In 1938, the company, with partners, incorporated 15 Iowa and Missouri stores, folding them into the brand. The growth of the company would continue from there, expanding across the region.

Hy-Vee continued to grow, and with the latest openings of stores in Indiana, the total number of current locations has reached 570 grocery stores across those nine states. 

The company has sales that top $13 billion each year. This includes both its branded stores (which are currently 285 in number) and its subsidiaries that may operate under other names.

An interesting fact about Hy-Vee is that the company is employee-owned. The 75,000 employees contribute to the expansion goals and overall values of the company, which has its main office in Des Moines, Iowa.

Though Hy-Vee has long talked about expanding into other areas of the US, the most recent acquisition of 22 Indiana locations is the latest update for the company. 

They continue to have plans to move south and east into more states providing more folks with an opportunity to save on everyday essentials, but as a private company dealing with rough financial periods thanks to increased costs of living, the plans for when the next locations will open are up in the air.