Hy-Vee to close all stores on Thanksgiving, first time in 92 years

WEST DES MOINES — Iowans will have to carefully plan ahead for their Thanksgiving meals this year, as the state’s largest grocery chain won’t be available for last-minute shopping trips. 

If you forgot the cranberry sauce, need more sweet potatoes or don’t have time to bake a pumpkin pie, get it the day before, because you won’t be able to buy it on Thanksgiving Day at Hy-Vee. The West Des Moines-based chain is announcing that all 285-plus retail locations will be closed on November 24th.

A news release says it will give the company’s 80,000-some employees across eight states the holiday off to spend with friends and family. This is a first in Hy-Vee’s 92-year history.