Charlotte After Dark: Night owls adapt as 24-hour grocery stores disappear

CHARLOTTE — Once a common sight, 24-hour stores are now a thing of the past.

No matter if it was the middle of the day or 3 in the morning, the Cotswold Harris Teeter used to be open — so was the South Park Harris Teeter and Walmart stores across the country.

Zee Phelps says those were the good days.

“If I needed something at night time, it’s convenient,” Phelps said.

Unfortunately, grocery expert Phil Lempert says it’s unlikely they’ll return. He said it all comes down to labor.

“We have a shortage of people working in supermarkets,” he told Channel 9’s Joe Bruno. “They have to pay more to get people on an hourly basis to go into a supermarket. There’s more supermarkets now than ever before, so they’re really competing with each other. So it’s all about dollars and cents.”

Most Harris Teeter stores are now open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. The company phased out of 24-hour stores in 2020, and a spokesperson says there are no plans to change back any time soon, saying they’ve decided to focus resources on the times most customers choose to shop.

Changes in shopping habits during the Covid-19 pandemic also played a role. In some cities, people can now use delivery apps to have groceries delivered no matter the time.

Just because late hours are a thing of the past now, it’s possible grocers will reconsider if shopping habits change.

Phelps hopes that’s the case.

“Bring it back man,” he said. “Some people need to shop, man!”

Late-night options remain

While grocery stores may be closed, there are still plenty of places open throughout the night, and it’s not just gas stations and hospitals.

When most people were sleeping, Channel 9’s Joe Bruno and his photographer went out on Charlotte’s dark and empty roads to see what the Queen City has to offer night owls on a typical weeknight.

From bars and late-night bites to 24-hour pharmacies and rolling dice at the Catawba Two Kings Casino in Kings Mountain, the options may be thin, but they aren’t nonexistent for the nocturnal and the bored. You just have to know where to find them.

Watch the video at the top of the webpage for an inside look at the city’s best late-night spots.

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