NEW YORK - MARCH 17: Shoppers line up inside Trader Joe's for the grand opening on 14th Street on March 17, 2006 in New York City. Trader Joe's, a specialty retail grocery store, has more than 200 stores in 19 states. (Photo by Michael Nagle/Getty Images)
The California-based grocery chain filed documents on Monday to register the Trader Joe's name with the Colorado Secretary of State.
Records indicate the company plans on "transacting business or conducting activities" in Colorado on April 1.
The Denver Business Journal says Trader Joe's has signed three contracts for metro-Denver locations.
The Daily Camera reports one of those locations will likely be Twenty Ninth Street in Boulder.
Twenty Ninth Street spokesperson Kate Honea had no comment.
Trader Joe's spokesperson Alison Mochizuki was also unable to comment when contacted by phone Wednesday.
"If I have anything to confirm, I absolutely will let you know," Mochizuki said.
Joes has more than 360 stores listed on its website - and more coming soon.
The site says nothing about stores in Colorado.
A spokesperson for the Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce tells 9NEWS two key issues have always held up Trader Joe's from coming here.
They want to sell alcohol in every store - which conflicts with state liquor laws. And they prefer to open stores in bulk - 10 or more at a time - with a central distribution site.
The likely arrival of Trader Joe's is creating a big buzz around Colorado. Just ask the combined 15,000 fans on more than a dozen Facebook pages, or the 4,200 people who signed an online petition to "bring Joe's to Denver."
Joe's is the home of Two Buck Chuck, their brand of wine that sells for $1.99 in California.
Even more exciting for some is the selection of eco-friendly Trader Joe's products offered at a lower price.
"It's environmentally friendly and it has a lot of good food," Emily Riso said.
9NEWS left messages with the Boulder Chamber of commerce and the mayor. We also checked with the state office of economic development, which said nothing is on their radar right now regarding Trader Joe's.
"It's just a good place to go if you want to eat healthy and not spend as much money. I live in California. I go all the time for shopping," Cyrus Shaki-Khan said.
Unlike other grocery stores which can carry as many as 50,000 items, Trader Joe's keeps about 4,000 items in stock and 80 percent of those items are its own brand.
The store is able to offer lower prices by offering a smaller variety of products in stores that are typically smaller and plainer than the competition.
Trader Joe's markets itself as "your neighborhood grocery store" or "your unique grocery store."
"It has the neighborhood feel. Trader Joe's is a great, great grocery store," Alex McDonald said.
In 2009, Consumer Reports ranked Trader Joes second-best supermarket chain in the nation - just behind Wegman's, which is based in Western New York.
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