Trader Joe’s Prank Spreads to Fayetteville, Store Not Coming to Raeford Rd.
A viral prank about new locations of Trader Joe’s stores popping up around the country has spread to Fayetteville. And it managed to get more than a few people.
Late Sunday night, a sign appeared on a construction fence at 3008 Raeford Road saying “Trader Joe’s Coming Fall 2024.” We can exclusively report the sign was posted as a prank, based on one done in Maryland by high schoolers.
“The sign has been sitting on my table for a while,” the prankster, who asked to remain anonymous said. “But then a story was recently put out about what it would take to get Trader Joe’s in Fayetteville, and it was the perfect time to do it.”
The Fayetteville Observer had done a story on July 3 asking what it would take for the community to get the often-desired grocery chain in the community. That story, and the hundreds of comments it inspired on social media, set the groundwork for the prank’s timing.
Back in April, a group of high school students in Pasadena, Maryland had tricked the town into thinking a store was coming. That sign had a QR code on it that led people to a music video for Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up,” a classic Rick Roll prank.
The Fayetteville prankster saw that, and knew this community was prime for tricking. But now they needed a location.
“I needed a construction fence, and thought about the one around the new Mi Casita building, but I knew it would get taken down fast there,” they said. “I wanted somewhere that might be able to stay up a little longer.”
Ultimately, the Trader Joe’s prank lasted only about 14 hours, as people in Fayetteville noticed quickly and word spread on social media posts like wildfire.
“Is this real, y’all?! On Raeford Rd beside Publix.” one poster in the “What’s Happening, Fayetteville NC” group said.
So, if not Trader Joe’s, what is coming to that site?
Well, back in March, Sheetz filed for a Development Review with Cumberland County for a new gas station location on that site. And the property owners also filed to recombine the properties connected there. The locations on the property had been a bank, and a fabric store, among many other businesses over the last few years.
Our Trader Joe’s Fayetteville prankster wasn’t sure about the Sheetz development but knew the location was prime for their prank.
“It just sort of worked out perfectly for a little fun,” they said. “I hoped it would last a little longer but it was worth it.”
