NORTH CAROLINA - For retailers, there’s nothing scarier than a competitor encroaching on your territory—a spook, a fright, a horror that persists even outside the month of October for many grocers. Publix is one such grocery retailer that is facing down a few of its rivals in the Tar Heel State market it had formerly marked for its own expansion.

This week—yesterday, October 24th, in fact—Trader Joe’s beat Publix in claiming a piece of Greensboro, North Carolina. According to the Winston-Salem Journal, Publix will open its own Greensboro store on November 13, adding to its two other local stores and a distribution center in the area.

And, while they say it takes two to tango, Lidl is insisting upon joining the grocery dance between Trader Joe’s and Publix. The news source noted that the discount grocer has scheduled the end of the year for a store opening in Greensboro as well.

A few cities away, in Charleston, Publix is also hoping to up its store count to four before Thanksgiving, reported The Post and Courier.

Last, but not least, Clayton will also join the lineup of North Carolina cities boasting new Publixes, with the The News & Observer claiming 130 employees are being prepped to open a location by the fall of 2020.

It looks like North Carolina will have Publix’s name written all over it in the coming year. Will more competitors try to jostle the Florida-based grocer's place in this market? And how will Publix respond? AndNowUKnow will continue to report.

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