Shoppers in a sunny California suburb may do a double take while shopping for Unexpected Cheddar.
On June 6, a brand-new Trader Joe’s opened in Sherman Oaks, California, part of the grocery chain’s plan to open 21 stores across 13 states. This particular store, however, is different from the rest for one glaring reason: It’s directly across the street from a Trader Joe’s that has been open for decades.
The new store, located at 14140 Riverside Drive, is affectionately called “Sherman Oaks too” on the Trader Joe’s website, and its address is only 21 digits different from its sister store at 14119 Riverside Drive. Both groceries open at 8 a.m. and close at 9 p.m. daily. Needless to say, area customers are confused.
“Want to know something actually insane?” local customer Shauna Green says in a June 7 TikTok while pointing out the pair of TJ’s in her view. “Literally across the street, still open. And I just asked the worker, I’m like, ‘How long is the other Trader Joe’s gonna stay open?’ and she said, ‘Um, they just signed their lease.’”
Green says she’d understand more if it were in a different part of the city, but across the street seems “excessive.”
“It’s not a bad problem to have; it’s just a perplexing situation,” she tells TODAY.com.
In the comments of her video, people expressed confusion and jealousy. Many said the move was straight out of Starbucks’ playbook — a clear sign of the “chainification” of a neighborhood.
“There are three Starbucks in Westchester by LAX, two Standalone and one in Ralph’s all across from each other,” wrote one TikTok user.
Matt Judd, who is Team Lead at the Sherman Oaks too location, says both locations are going to just “play it out and see how it goes” as there is enough demand in the area.
“I think all along we intended to close the one original one that had been there since 1973, a bit of an undersized store and then somewhere along the line, we decided maybe we could see how two goes for a little bit,” Judd tells TODAY.com. “There’s that much business here, and we’ve had such a great relationship with our customers for 52 years.”
Judd also notes that the “more modern” store is “about 40% bigger” with wider aisles, bigger refrigeration and a larger frozen section.
A manager at the original Sherman Oaks Trader Joe’s directed us to the corporate office, which declined to comment further on its neighboring stores.
Online, some customers have noted the upgrades at the new store, with one TikToker in a June 9 video showing the new parking garage and “spacious” interior.
Considering Trader Joe’s reputation for terrible parking, Green welcomes the larger spaces.
“The other parking lot is a TJ’s cliche, it’s hell. Cramped and compact spaces with tight turns and a nonstop gridlock,” she says. “My plan is to go wherever the parking is better.”
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