Royal Farms, a Baltimore, Maryland-based convenience store chain, has signed a long-term lease at Tradepoint Atlantic, a 3,100-acre, multimodal global logistics center in Baltimore. The center offers access to deep-water berths, railroads, highways and storage space.
Royal Farms is the first tenant of Tradepoint Atlantic’s retail component. Shoppes at Tradepoint Atlantic, the retail portion of the development, comprises more than 70 acres. The Royal Farms development includes retail gas and diesel fueling, a convenience store and car wash.
“We are excited to welcome Royal Farms, which is a brand both highly recognizable to Baltimore-area consumers and is known for its consistently impressive quality,” said Eric Gilbert, chief development officer of Tradepoint Atlantic, in a Nov. 17 news release. “Today’s announcement is a first step in the development of the retail portion of our project. We expect the thousands of people who will work at Tradepoint Atlantic and the tens of thousands that travel I-695 every day will welcome this highly accessible retail development to the area.”
Royal Farms is expected to open in late 2018.
“We’re extremely proud, as well as excited, to take one of Baltimore’s favorite local brands and partner with a significant part of Baltimore’s history as well as its future as part of our business growth,” said Jeff Bainbridge, Royal Farms real estate director. “In addition to the symbolic nature of our move to Sparrows Point, we’re eager to benefit from convenient access to thousands of customers on-site at Tradepoint Atlantic as well as tens of thousands of customers in the immediate area.”
Royal Farms began as a family-owned dairy farm in 1918. It evolved into a convenience and gas station chain that now operates approximately 185 stores in Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. It is known for its award-winning coffee, fried chicken and new signature-inspired sandwiches, subs and wraps. In 2017, Royal Farms was awarded by Forbes as one of “America’s Best Mid-Size Employers.”
