There was probably a reason for each store, and while in California especially, it was usually the smaller store, it wasn't always that way. The Albertsons in Uptown Dallas was probably more for selling it off for money (indeed, MSFM did quite well with it) and didn't have to be divested. The Lucky in San Ysidro, meanwhile, had no stores nearby and probably gotten rid of as a junker, and it would've done Haggen wise to resell it.Super S wrote:What puzzled me from day one of the merger though, is why they chose to divest the much newer and nicer Albertsons store and keep the old Safeway open. Especially with the proximity of Baker City to Boise. Any way you look at it, this is a very odd situation.rwsandiego wrote:The editorial by the Baker City Herald fails to point out that the court only allowed Albertsons to bid on Haggen stores when no other bidder emerged for the store. Apparently, no other grocer (or other type of bidder, for that matter) wanted the location. The newspaper ought to level its criticism at the town government for failing to lure a competitor, thus creating a monopoly.
I'm going to take a guess and say the original Safeway will close at some point. Maybe then a competitor who is more comfortable with operating a small store will emerge and take it over.
It was probably the reason that plagued Albertsons in other markets, despite being newer, nicer, and (often) bigger, it just wasn't as popular as old standbys. That's also probably why it became Safeway afterward.