Whole Foods set to close two Toronto stores

A Whole Foods Market Inc. location in Willowbrook, Illinois, in 2017. Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

American grocery chain Whole Foods is set to shutter two Toronto-based stores in the coming weeks.

A representative with the health-food focused market said they will be closing their Yonge and Sheppard and Leaside stores by Aug. 22.

“Like any retail business, we regularly evaluate each of our stores and make decisions to position the company for long-term success,” an email statement read.

Whole Foods Market Yorkville and Markham locations will continue to operate, and a new location is planned for the King Street West neighbourhood later this year.

The grocery store’s representative said they were committed to supporting impacted employees and “making any transition as seamless as possible.”

An employee with Whole Food’s Sheppard location told CTV News that staff learned on Friday morning that the store would be closing. The source said staff was told the decision wasn’t related to the trade war with the U.S. or Amazon’s ownership of the company, but rather based on which stores weren’t performing well.