Sprouts Farmers Market opened its 20,000-square-foot store in mid-January in the Murdock Carousel shopping mall in Port Charlotte. 

Located between Havertys Furniture and Earth Origins Market, Sprouts saw a steady stream of shoppers who left the store with their reusable bags laden with a variety of products, many of them organic. 

Besides produce, meats, cheeses, beverages, wines and seafood, Sprouts sells its own brand and foods to go, reminiscent of Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods Market stores. 

Sprouts spokesperson Courtney Schrauben Haik said the store hired 80 employees for the Port Charlotte location, which became the 44th Sprouts in Florida. 

In terms of size, as of February there were 409 Sprouts stores in 23 states and U.S. territories, serving 295 cities. By comparison, Trader Joe’s leads the pack of organic grocery store chains with nearly 570 stores, and Whole Foods Market has more than 500 across the U.S. 

With plans to open more stores, it appears Sprouts Farmers Market is catching up. 

In Southwest Florida, there are also locations in North Naples, Cape Coral, south Fort Myers and Estero. 

Sprouts Farmers Market has bulk items, including a variety of grains, nuts, dried fruit and candies that can be scooped into plastic bags or reusable cloth bags on display. 

The best way perhaps to describe grocery store is that it is an indoor farmers market with elements of a health food store, specialty gourmet shop, general store, sushi stand and a butcher shop where customers can find poultry and meats that have not been injected with hormones or chemicals. It also sells a variety of sauces, including those for Indian cuisine, that are difficult to find elsewhere. 

The chain has come a long way since its humble beginnings in 1945 when Henry Boney opened a fruit stand in San Diego. It soon grew into a handful of open-air markets, and in 1969 his sons developed Boney’s Market, which became a community grocery store. In 1977, it was renamed Henry’s Farmers Market, and the Sprouts brand was born in 2002 in Chandler, Arizona, by members of the Boney family. 

Apollo Global Management was in charge then and merged three Boney-founded brands under one umbrella to become Sprouts. 

Today, Sprouts Farmers Market is traded on the Nasdaq. 

The store is located at 2000 Tamiami Trail and is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.