Wegmans is closing one of its largest grocery stores. Its unusual location hurt business

NATICK, Mass. (AP) — The Wegmans supermarket chain is closing one of its largest and most unusual stores because it has not attracted enough business, the company said.

The Natick, Massachusetts store will close on an undetermined date this summer, the Rochester, New York-based company said in a statement on Thursday.

“Making these decisions is never easy. However, we do it for the long-term benefit of our people, our customers, and our communities,” Brien MacKendrick, the regional human resources director, said in the statement. “Unfortunately, with this nontraditional location we are unable to attract enough customers for our business model to work.”

The 134,000-square-foot (12,450-square-meter) store opened in 2018 in a space within the Natick Mall once occupied by a JCPenney department store. It was the supermarket chain’s first two-level store within a major mall.

The store also had a full-service Mexican restaurant, until it closed in 2019.

The store has 365 employees and all are being offered positions at one of the company’s other five Boston-area locations. There are no plans to close any other stores in the state, the statement said. Wegmans has more than 100 stores along the East Coast.