The Fresh Market

The Fresh Market was founded by Ray and Beverly Berry on March 5, 1982, in Greensboro, North Carolina. Inspiration struck during a trip to Europe, where the couple experienced the charm of local open-air food markets. Ray had previously overseen thousands of 7-Eleven stores for Southland Corporation, and the two set out to create something entirely different — a small, boutique specialty grocery store at a time when the warehouse supermarket was the dominant format. The initial 14,000-square-foot store featured a farmer's market atmosphere with locally-grown produce, freshly roasted coffee, an old-world style butcher shop and fish market, in-store bakery, and fresh cheeses and cured meats — and became the blueprint for all future locations. Today The Fresh Market operates 166 stores across 22 states, and has been recognized by USA Today as Best Grocery Store in America four times, including 2025, sweeping all grocery-related categories.