Locally owned and operated Lowes Foods is expanding into Lyman, S.C.An existing Kj’s Market, located at 12189 West Greenville Highway in Lyman, will be converted to a full-service Lowes Foods, with construction beginning in early 2026. According to the company, all Kj’s Market store employees will retain their jobs at Lowes Foods.Both Lowes Foods and Kj’s Market are owned by parent company Alex Lee Inc., based in Hickory, N.C.“The conversion of the Lyman store to Lowes Foods reflects our commitmen...
Locally owned and operated Lowes Foods is expanding into Lyman, S.C.
An existing Kj’s Market, located at 12189 West Greenville Highway in Lyman, will be converted to a full-service Lowes Foods, with construction beginning in early 2026. According to the company, all Kj’s Market store employees will retain their jobs at Lowes Foods.
Both Lowes Foods and Kj’s Market are owned by parent company Alex Lee Inc., based in Hickory, N.C.
“The conversion of the Lyman store to Lowes Foods reflects our commitment to delivering the right experience for every community we serve," said Lowes Foods President Tim Lowe, who will be speaking at Progressive Grocer’s upcoming Grocery Impact event in November. "Kj’s Market remains an important part of our portfolio, as evidenced by our recent investment in remodel.”
While Lowes Foods renovated three Kj’s Markets in Florence and Lake City, S.C., last year, it recently revealed that it was converting a Kj’s Market in John’s Island, S.C., into a full-service Lowes Foods store.
Advertisement - article continues below
Additionally, Lowes Foods is introducing new stores in the Triangle region of North Carolina, specifically in Wendell and Fuquay-Varina.
Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Lowes Foods LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Alex Lee. The company employs approximately 9,000 people and operates more than 80 full-service supermarkets in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. Lowes Foods is No. 67 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2025 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.
Alex Lee is a family-owned and -operated company that employs approximately 15,000 people. In addition to being the parent company of Lowes Foods, it also serves as the parent company of Merchants Distributors LLC, which provides full-service wholesale distribution to supermarkets; Souto Foods, a distributor of authentic Hispanic foods; and Import Mex, a distributor of Mexican and Central American products.
In addition, Alex Lee is the parent company of W. Lee Flowers & Co., which operates approximately 60 IGA and Kj’s Market grocery stores and provides wholesale distribution to supermarkets.