Lucky’s Comes to Missouri

Lucky’s Market’s first natural and specialty grocery in Missouri will open in Columbia with a Jan. 15 “bacon-cutting” ceremony at 10 a.m. and a $10,000 check giveaway to the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture, followed by coffee and a store tour.

The Missouri store is the fourth nationwide for Boulder, Colo.-based Lucky’s, which expanded within Colorado and into Ohio in 2013, and plans further locations in Louisville, Ky., and Billings, Mont., this year.

Continuing Celebration

Other special events marking the store’s debut include a grand-opening party on Saturday, Jan. 25, featuring $1 house-made pork brats grilled outside, live music and face painting for the kids; a local food fest on Sunday, Jan. 26, with the Ozark Mountain Biscuit Food Truck, local beer and wine sampling, and samples from local vendors; “5% Days” in which 5 percent of the day’s total net sales will go to Grant Elementary (Jan. 21), Lee Expressive Arts Elementary (Jan. 28), Thompson Center at Mizzou (Feb. 4) and Blues in the Schools (Feb. 11); and reusable bag credits from Jan. 15 through March 31, during which shoppers reusing their shopping bags will get a 10-cent credit on their purchase or can send a donation to PedNet, First Chance for Kids or the Columbia Community Gardening Coalition.

The store will feature a broad selection of organic, specialty and gluten-free items, along with house-made deli items, in-house cured and smoked bacon, local produce, fresh meats and seafood, and a bakery. Amenities will include free wellness activities and store “walkabouts” for gluten-free and other food categories.

“We imagine our stores as an oasis of health, kindness and support, the kind of store we love to shop in ourselves,” said Bo Sharon, who founded Lucky’s with his wife and fellow chef, Trish. “Boulder is a big town for natural food, and we hope to share the best of that in Columbia.”