Turnip Truck Owner Eyes Nashvilles Outer Ring

 

Photo for Nashville Business Journal by Martin B. Cherry

By Julia Masters  –  Reporter, Nashville Business Journal

 

The Turnip Truck has been a Nashville favorite since 2001 when John Dyke opened the first store in East Nashville.

Last Wednesday, the grocer — which sources from over 80 local vendors — announced its fourth location in Midtown, set to open in 2023.

Dyke — raised on a farm in Greene County, Tennessee — has expansive growth plans for the next chapter of Turnip Truck that go beyond his new Vanderbilt neighborhood location.

“I have a map and it has about eight different spots … I know where I want to go, I know the areas,” Dyke said in an interview. “A couple of the spots that I am look at right now would be Madison, Franklin, Mt. Juliet and there are about three or four others.”

When planning a new location, Dyke gets demographic reports on areas he is eying. He will then look for opportunity in a specific piece of property.

“Our vision is to be Nashville’s most local, trusted grocer. To me, Nashville is Metropolitan Nashville, I don’t look at the core,” Dyke said. “Our next venture, and we are looking at it in several different angles right now, we need to create a central commissary-type kitchen.”

The commissary would allow Turnip Truck to have consistency in both recipes and food service across its different locations.

If a large enough piece of real estate is found, Dyke would like to create a store, commissary and warehouse at the same location.

“I could have better buying purchases, better patrol over food, better consistency and be able to look at how we provide these services and build a culture where people that want to grow with the Turnip Truck, we can take care of them,” Dyke said.

The new Midtown location, creating around 100 to 125 jobs, will become a much-needed service in the area, both as a place for professionals and students to grab a quick meal and shop. The Turnip Truck’s space between Lyle and 20th avenues has around 80 parking spots for customers.

“That area, there’s really not many grocery stores and the one grocery store on the other side of Vanderbilt is getting ready to shut down,” Dyke said.

Located in 23,500 square feet of Vanderbilt University’s new graduate and professional student housing, the store will have increased food service offerings in addition to traditional Turnip Truck inventory.

There will be an expanded coffee and juice bar, fresh pizzas, acai bowls, fresh sushi and a build-your-own-burger bar.

A large part of the Turnip Truck’s success is its commitment to high quality produce and its business model of being a reflection of customer feedback, Dyke said.

“We have not waivered off why I set off to do what I did 21 years ago, and it’s always been about this passion of produce. It’s been about local produce, but mainly around organic produce,” Dyke said. “I think sometimes we forget what food is about. … We forget as individuals to slow down and enjoy food.”

Dyke referenced the fresh strawberries he just got in, picking one up, feeling its texture, looking at its color, before just biting in.

Beyond produce, Dyke has 60 grass-fed black angus steer raised in a manner that regenerates the soil and has honey-bee hives at the East Nashville store.

Today, most people that frequent Turnip Truck don’t know it by any other name. But when Dyke opened the store, it was called The Good Earth Market.

Later the name was changed after Dyke said the old Southern expression, “I didn’t just fall off the turnip truck.”

“My favorite part is watching people come in and want to change their lifestyle and eat a healthier way, and watch them keep showing up,” he said.

Though Dyke was determined to get away from his farming background, graduating from The University of Tennessee, he eventually came back to the values it instilled in him: hard work and dedication.

Turnip Truck Will Open New Midtown Location

Nashville’s Local Grocer Bound for 20th Ave and Lyle in 2023

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (April 20, 2022) — Turnip Truck, Nashville’s locally owned grocery chain, will open its fourth and largest location in mid-2023 in Vanderbilt’s new graduate and professional student housing development.

“We’re thrilled to bring fresh, healthy food to the heart of Nashville on a grander scale than ever before,” said Turnip Truck founder and CEO John Dyke. “Our customers will find the local, natural and organic goods they enjoy at our other locations, in our largest store footprint.”

Situated in the heart of Midtown Nashville between Lyle and 20th Avenues, the new 616-bed mixed-use building is a joint venture between Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions and Axium Infrastructure. Turnip Truck’s 23,500-square-foot store will occupy the South Tower’s ground level. With 80 store-dedicated complimentary parking spots, Turnip Truck will be easily accessible to both car and foot traffic.

Larger than Turnip Truck’s 18,000-square-foot flagship East Nashville location, the new store will offer a full-service grocery store, deli, juice bar, salad bar, hot bar, and grab-and-go meal options. Turnip Truck will offer 50 percent more food service at the new location than it does at its East Nashville, Gulch and Charlotte Avenue locations.

“We built Turnip Truck to enhance the health of our community, and we are eager to serve such a dynamic pocket of Nashville,” Dyke said. “Whether customers make the trip to this store from their homes above it, on their commutes, or from nearby neighborhoods, we want them to enjoy the welcoming, nourishing experience people expect from Turnip Truck.”

Key collaborators on the project include general contractor Crain Construction, UNFI Store Services (design) and DC Engineering.

Update for 2/19 – 2/22

Update 2/22: We’ve resumed regular hours and delivery

Hours for all three stores are Monday to Saturday 7am to 9pm; Sunday 8am to 8pm.

 

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Due to the ice and snow we will continue to have amended hours through Saturday 2/20 and resume normal hours and Delivery Sunday 2/21.

All three stores will be open Friday from 9am to 5pm and Saturday from 9am to 7pm. Sunday we will resume our regular hours 8am to 8pm.

Online ordering for curbside pick up will be available for the East and Charlotte Ave stores for Friday and Saturday. Delivery will resume on Sunday 2/21.

We will continue to have hot soups, paninis and meals on the Hot Bar.

Our Charlotte Ave store has been experiencing some issues with the phone service, but they are indeed open.

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