McKinney Albertsons converting to Tom Thumb

[pseudo3d]

http://www.dallasnews.com/business/reta ... -tom-thumb

It's official, McKinney's Albertsons will be a Tom Thumb. This looks to be an early 2000s build nestled in a bunch of golf courses and subdivisions. The interesting thing, the news article says specifically that the Casa Linda Albertsons in Dallas won't be converting.

[storewanderer]

Quote from that article:

"We are in a fortunate and unique position to be able to select from two exceptional store banners for the communities we serve," said spokeswoman Connie Yates.

Two banners? What about Market Street? I guess that one is just being pushed aside/ignored.

[pseudo3d]

Quote from that article:

"We are in a fortunate and unique position to be able to select from two exceptional store banners for the communities we serve," said spokeswoman Connie Yates.

Two banners? What about Market Street? I guess that one is just being pushed aside/ignored.

I think they're talking about specifically the "South" division, of which United isn't part of it. But you're right, Market Street is the best brand of the three and it would benefit greatly if United ran the show in DFW.

[architect]

http://www.dallasnews.com/business/reta ... -tom-thumb

It's official, McKinney's Albertsons will be a Tom Thumb. This looks to be an early 2000s build nestled in a bunch of golf courses and subdivisions. The interesting thing, the news article says specifically that the Casa Linda Albertsons in Dallas won't be converting.

This is not surprising at all. In DFW, many Albertsons locations have not received renovations since the early 2000's, since the emphasis under the LLC era was primarily on improving operations rather than building/renovating stores. As a result, many of these stores show their age, even the early 2000's builds. Now that the Albertsons banner is hitting a make or break point in DFW, the company likely has come to the realization that most of these stores need capital investment, so why not convert them to a more upscale banner (where appropriate) at the same time? In particular, this part of McKinney has been a major missing link in Tom Thumb's geographic footprint (much like the situation in Wylie), so this store will clearly help to fill a hole in the market. My one concern is the possibility of this store cannibalizing sales at the nearby Market Street at Eldorado Pkwy and Ridge Rd, which is an upscale and extremely well-run store. Also, as a side note, this leaves only one Albertsons remaining in the entirety of Collin County (one of the fastest growing counties in the US, encompassing the wealthy suburbs north of Dallas) at Eldorado Pkwy and 75.

Also, although Albertsons claims that the Casa Linda store will not be converted, it would not surprise me to see this store converted at a later date. The surrounding area is simply trending too upscale to be appropriate for the Albertsons banner.

[pseudo3d]

http://www.dallasnews.com/business/reta ... -tom-thumb

It's official, McKinney's Albertsons will be a Tom Thumb. This looks to be an early 2000s build nestled in a bunch of golf courses and subdivisions. The interesting thing, the news article says specifically that the Casa Linda Albertsons in Dallas won't be converting.

This is not surprising at all. In DFW, many Albertsons locations have not received renovations since the early 2000's, since the emphasis under the LLC era was primarily on improving operations rather than building/renovating stores. As a result, many of these stores show their age, even the early 2000's builds. Now that the Albertsons banner is hitting a make or break point in DFW, the company likely has come to the realization that most of these stores need capital investment, so why not convert them to a more upscale banner (where appropriate) at the same time? In particular, this part of McKinney has been a major missing link in Tom Thumb's geographic footprint (much like the situation in Wylie), so this store will clearly help to fill a hole in the market. My one concern is the possibility of this store cannibalizing sales at the nearby Market Street at Eldorado Pkwy and Ridge Rd, which is an upscale and extremely well-run store. Also, as a side note, this leaves only one Albertsons remaining in the entirety of Collin County (one of the fastest growing counties in the US, encompassing the wealthy suburbs north of Dallas) at Eldorado Pkwy and 75.

Also, although Albertsons claims that the Casa Linda store will not be converted, it would not surprise me to see this store converted at a later date. The surrounding area is simply trending too upscale to be appropriate for the Albertsons banner.

There was a case where there was a Market Street a mile away from a Tom Thumb somewhere up in north Dallas, can't remember where. In any case, it's at least smart to wait until the stores are up for renovation to convert them to a Tom Thumb. Unfortunately, the décor set tends to be pretty bland. I was in a store like that recently (the Midtown Randalls, which is actually a rather small store). I hope they can convert to the "Color Lifestyle" or something, which when executed well is at least modern and attractive.

[architect]

http://www.dallasnews.com/business/reta ... -tom-thumb

It's official, McKinney's Albertsons will be a Tom Thumb. This looks to be an early 2000s build nestled in a bunch of golf courses and subdivisions. The interesting thing, the news article says specifically that the Casa Linda Albertsons in Dallas won't be converting.

This is not surprising at all. In DFW, many Albertsons locations have not received renovations since the early 2000's, since the emphasis under the LLC era was primarily on improving operations rather than building/renovating stores. As a result, many of these stores show their age, even the early 2000's builds. Now that the Albertsons banner is hitting a make or break point in DFW, the company likely has come to the realization that most of these stores need capital investment, so why not convert them to a more upscale banner (where appropriate) at the same time? In particular, this part of McKinney has been a major missing link in Tom Thumb's geographic footprint (much like the situation in Wylie), so this store will clearly help to fill a hole in the market. My one concern is the possibility of this store cannibalizing sales at the nearby Market Street at Eldorado Pkwy and Ridge Rd, which is an upscale and extremely well-run store. Also, as a side note, this leaves only one Albertsons remaining in the entirety of Collin County (one of the fastest growing counties in the US, encompassing the wealthy suburbs north of Dallas) at Eldorado Pkwy and 75.

Also, although Albertsons claims that the Casa Linda store will not be converted, it would not surprise me to see this store converted at a later date. The surrounding area is simply trending too upscale to be appropriate for the Albertsons banner.

There was a case where there was a Market Street a mile away from a Tom Thumb somewhere up in north Dallas, can't remember where. In any case, it's at least smart to wait until the stores are up for renovation to convert them to a Tom Thumb. Unfortunately, the décor set tends to be pretty bland. I was in a store like that recently (the Midtown Randalls, which is actually a rather small store). I hope they can convert to the "Color Lifestyle" or something, which when executed well is at least modern and attractive.

There are/were actually multiple instances of Market Street stores being located in close proximity to a Tom Thumb (and some still exist). As far as divested stores go, both the McKinney and Plano Tom Thumb locations which were divested to Minyard Sun Fresh were within close proximity to a Market Street (Plano was literally across the street). In addition, a similar situation still exists in both Coppell and Flower Mound, with the Flower Mound store actually in close proximity to multiple Tom Thumb locations.

And I agree with you on the decor; the Florida decor package is actually quite boring, especially when used in an oversized store like a typical early-2000's Albertsons. I'm still hoping that Colorful Lifestyle will make an appearance in Texas, as it is both attractive and extremely versatile.

[pseudo3d]

The "Florida Decor" is actually kind of nice but I feel it won't age well. At least the stores seem to be full-featured.

There is actually a second McKinney store at Eldorado and US-75 that I do not know the fate of. It didn't mention it at all in the other Albertsons in town. I fear that it may be a "silent" closure. Ideally, I would love to see it become a second Tom Thumb but a prototype with the Lawn & Garden center re-activated.

[architect]

The "Florida Decor" is actually kind of nice but I feel it won't age well. At least the stores seem to be full-featured.

There is actually a second McKinney store at Eldorado and US-75 that I do not know the fate of. It didn't mention it at all in the other Albertsons in town. I fear that it may be a "silent" closure. Ideally, I would love to see it become a second Tom Thumb but a prototype with the Lawn & Garden center re-activated.

It would not surprise me to see this store quietly closed. Although it is located close to wealthy neighborhoods west of 75, most of the areas to the east of 75 in McKinney are largely lower-income neighborhoods where residents are more likely to shop at Winco or Walmart vs paying Albertsons' inflated prices. Like many other Albertsons in DFW, it has also not received a renovation since the early 2000's. This would actually make a great Kroger location, though I doubt we would see Albertsons sell to a direct competitor unless if they simply wanted to admit defeat in the local market. Kroger's current store off of University and east of 75 in McKinney is quite cramped and feels outdated despite Kroger's efforts to keep it up to date.

[pseudo3d]

The "Florida Decor" is actually kind of nice but I feel it won't age well. At least the stores seem to be full-featured.

There is actually a second McKinney store at Eldorado and US-75 that I do not know the fate of. It didn't mention it at all in the other Albertsons in town. I fear that it may be a "silent" closure. Ideally, I would love to see it become a second Tom Thumb but a prototype with the Lawn & Garden center re-activated.

It would not surprise me to see this store quietly closed. Although it is located close to wealthy neighborhoods west of 75, most of the areas to the east of 75 in McKinney are largely lower-income neighborhoods where residents are more likely to shop at Winco or Walmart vs paying Albertsons' inflated prices. Like many other Albertsons in DFW, it has also not received a renovation since the early 2000's. This would actually make a great Kroger location, though I doubt we would see Albertsons sell to a direct competitor unless if they simply wanted to admit defeat in the local market. Kroger's current store off of University and east of 75 in McKinney is quite cramped and feels outdated despite Kroger's efforts to keep it up to date.

It might be acceptable if Albertsons and Kroger arranged for a store swap. McKinney's Albertsons for the TCU store Kroger swiped from them in a time when what was supposed to be a new building with an Albertsons below it became somehow being sold to Kroger. Probably would never happen, tho.

[architect]

The "Florida Decor" is actually kind of nice but I feel it won't age well. At least the stores seem to be full-featured.

There is actually a second McKinney store at Eldorado and US-75 that I do not know the fate of. It didn't mention it at all in the other Albertsons in town. I fear that it may be a "silent" closure. Ideally, I would love to see it become a second Tom Thumb but a prototype with the Lawn & Garden center re-activated.

It would not surprise me to see this store quietly closed. Although it is located close to wealthy neighborhoods west of 75, most of the areas to the east of 75 in McKinney are largely lower-income neighborhoods where residents are more likely to shop at Winco or Walmart vs paying Albertsons' inflated prices. Like many other Albertsons in DFW, it has also not received a renovation since the early 2000's. This would actually make a great Kroger location, though I doubt we would see Albertsons sell to a direct competitor unless if they simply wanted to admit defeat in the local market. Kroger's current store off of University and east of 75 in McKinney is quite cramped and feels outdated despite Kroger's efforts to keep it up to date.

It might be acceptable if Albertsons and Kroger arranged for a store swap. McKinney's Albertsons for the TCU store Kroger swiped from them in a time when what was supposed to be a new building with an Albertsons below it became somehow being sold to Kroger. Probably would never happen, tho.

Actually, Albertsons selling underperforming DFW stores to Kroger is not unprecedented. In Garland, there is a 90's Albertsons on Walnut St. which was sold to Kroger at some point (this store replaced a nearby Superstore to the south). Even today, the building still retains Albertsons' Food and Pharmacy signage. The TCU store is a whole different story, as clearly that store has no shortage of business just by location alone. Overall, I only anticipate that Albertsons would sell a store to a competitor if the price was high enough, and the store simply showed no signs of turning around under Albertsons' leadership.