Fiesta acquired by CA based El Super

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storewanderer
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Re: Fiesta acquired by CA based El Super

Post by storewanderer »

It is surprising the number of different stores in Chicago. Lots with great mixes of ethnic products (more than Hispanic or Asian which seems to be the only two things with any depth out west, yet they have the Hispanic and Asian stuff in Chicago too...) of others like Italian or Polish foods.
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Re: Fiesta acquired by CA based El Super

Post by rwsandiego »

storewanderer wrote: March 27th, 2018, 9:03 pm It is surprising the number of different stores in Chicago. Lots with great mixes of ethnic products (more than Hispanic or Asian which seems to be the only two things with any depth out west, yet they have the Hispanic and Asian stuff in Chicago too...) of others like Italian or Polish foods.
Funny, but I was surprised by the lack of variety among ethnic grocers out west. Having grown up and lived in Chicago until in my mid-thirties it was a shock to see the lack of diversity elsewhere. There are a couple of factors that contribute to the plethora of supermarkets that stock ethnic foods:
  • There is a rich variety of ethnic groups living in the Chicagoland area
  • In the 1970's and 1980's a number of supermarket chains pulled out of the area or closed, providing an opportunity for independent operators to open large (for them) stores
  • Jewel had a duopoly with the much-smaller Dominicks (even in the wake of Walmart and Meijer) That closed the door on other chains and gave independents the opportunity to thrive
  • Certified and Centrella were strong distributors until recently, which allowed ethnic markets to source mainstream groceries in addition to ethnic offerings
Believe it or not, San Diego has some wonderful ethnic stores. The various North Park Markets plus the various "international" markets are terrific.

Next time you visit Chicago, check out Marketplace on Oakton, just west of Skokie Blvd across the Skokie Swift (Yellow Line) tracks. AMAZING!

Back on topic, I hope El Super doesn't mess up Fiesta, but they probably will.
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Re: Fiesta acquired by CA based El Super

Post by pseudo3d »

There were a few things about Fiesta that made it unique (the "whole world" rather than just Latin America, despite the latter being the focus), and one of the reasons why I think a buyer like Kroger would've much, much better for the chain. For one, Fiesta has tried to reach out and build large, upscale stores. In the early 1990s, Fiesta tried to move upscale and build several stores out in the suburbs with a similar merchandise mix of traditional items and international items. Unfortunately, most were failures. The store out near Katy Freeway near the "Villages" (but in Spring Branch) survived up until the Katy Freeway widening when it closed, citing loss of business from the construction and parking, and became a 99 Ranch Market (much in the way a former Randalls up the street became a H Mart around the same time). There was around the Bissonnet area (can't recall the location off-hand) that was a nice area when it was built but it has declined since...there was one in Willowbrook (still there despite Rooms to Go, Willowbrook Mall, and many other traditional big boxes), Deerbrook (the first Fiesta closure, closed in less than 16 months and sold to Randalls, which didn't have any better luck), and Webster (featured a hydroponic garden and made industry headlines). Years later they tried to take over a small independent to make a prototype store with a yogurt shop and the first Caribou Coffee in Texas, but it did poorly and closed.

They also tended to go in lower-class areas that weren't necessarily Hispanic either and then fled as the area gentrified. They had a store in Montrose that was picked up from AppleTree (Weingarten/Safeway) in the mid-1990s across from an apartment complex from the 1930s (known for "starving artist" types) but as the area gentrified, the apartment complex was torn down for a modern H-E-B and Fiesta closed their store shortly thereafter (and the shopping center was demolished for apartments). Similarly, Fiesta operated another store in the Heights during a time when the Heights was not what it was today, and was closed as they were essentially priced out. It's now becoming an H-E-B.

H-E-B is perhaps the one that will benefit the most from Fiesta's possible impending future failure as H-E-B knows how to market its stores properly, and that's why I think Kroger should have been the one to buy Fiesta. Kroger has tended to close stores in weaker/ethnic areas, and their attempt to change that has been met with failure. If Kroger bought Fiesta, then they could "flip" stores depending on demographics, so a Fiesta in a "nice" area could close, renovate, and become Kroger, while a "bad" Kroger could close and reopen as Fiesta.

Maybe Fiesta's new owners won't bother it too much.
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Re: Fiesta acquired by CA based El Super

Post by storewanderer »

El Super could learn some things from a format like Fiesta that has more product depth and caters to a wider range of ethnic groups. It will be interesting to see what they do.

I do not want to give the feeling El Super is bad. But they are just a lower end operator and cut a lot of corners to get to the low prices. Less mix, unkempt stores, long checkout lines, bag it yourself (after you pay for the bags in CA), etc. While many hispanic formats are more service based, El Super is not.
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