Trader Joe's adds new stores in Reading and Quincy, expanding in Massachusetts

Trader Joe’s is adding two stores at opposite ends of Greater Boston, a move that will not just broaden the map but also change how crews move through the region. The Reading store at 34 Walkers Brook Drive is already under construction and expected in 2026, while the Quincy store at 101 McConville Way is slated for late 2027. Together, they stretch the company’s Massachusetts reach from the North Shore to Quincy Center, a footprint that can open more hiring slots, create new transfer options and ease pressure on nearby stores that often become the first stop for internal moves.

Reading officials first said on March 25 that Trader Joe’s would take space in The Crossing at Walkers Brook, where renovations were expected to start immediately and demolition permits were already in hand. The store will occupy about 13,700 square feet, or roughly 70% of the former Staples space, and will become Trader Joe’s 22nd Massachusetts location. The shopping center already counts The Paper Store, Golf Galaxy, The Home Depot and Jordan’s Furniture among its tenants, which means the new store is arriving inside an established retail corridor rather than a standalone project.

Chris Maguire, Trader Joe’s regional vice president, said the Reading opening follows the company’s first north-of-Boston store in 1998 and its current presence in Saugus and Peabody, calling Reading a “natural next step.” He said the store is meant to serve shoppers in Reading, Wakefield, Woburn, Stoneham and North Reading. For crew members, that matters because a store with that kind of regional pull usually becomes a talent hub as well, drawing applicants from multiple towns and creating a wider pool for transfers, leadership openings and schedule flexibility.

The Quincy store carries a different kind of weight. City officials confirmed the opening on April 15 after months of speculation, with city media director Mark Carey calling it the “worst kept secret.” Mayor Tom Koch said the store is an important symbol of downtown Quincy’s revitalization. The project at McConville Way is part of a larger mixed-use redevelopment that includes about 300 housing units, a parking garage, a Chipotle and a 100,000-square-foot ambulatory care center planned by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center for 2027 completion.

That broader buildout means the Quincy store will not simply serve as another grocery stop. It will anchor a dense new employment and residential zone, which could reshape commute patterns for future crew and managers on the South Shore just as the Reading store does on the North Shore. Reading Select Board co-chairs Chris Haley and Melissa Murphy said the store will create jobs, bring visitors and strengthen the local tax base, while economic development planner Kevin McCarthy called it a “huge coup.” For Trader Joe’s, the two openings signal growth. For existing stores, they also signal a quieter rebalancing of labor, leadership and opportunity across Massachusetts.