Albertsons/Safeway 2018 & 2019: Openings and Closings

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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by pseudo3d »

Knight wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 3:27 pm
pseudo3d wrote: December 31st, 2017, 11:59 pm We'll be heading into store closure season as well, which will be cataloged here as well. Personal predictions hold that southern California will see closures based on overlap as well as Southwest (likely Seattle/Portland as well), and another A&P/Pathmark or two will close. South will probably see overlap closure in Dallas, shrinkage in Louisiana (unless they acquire Winn-Dixie stores or Rouses), and possibly Houston. The only real sign of hope out of Houston this year involved reopening the Kingwood store, which is important but not exactly encouraging in terms of market share.
If I were Albertson's and wanted to increase my presence in Louisiana, would I want Southeastern Grocers' perpetually failing Winn-Dixie stores, or would I want Rouse's?

Winn-Dixie has ran its course in Louisiana. Southeastern Grocers' possible bankruptcy could lead to the closure of many BI-LO, Fresco y Más, Harvey's, and WInn-Dixie stores and exits from several markets.

Rouse's has expanded into Mississippi and Alabama. It has store count and better market share. It would fit well with Albertson's footprint. Albertson's could expand pharmacy operations into Rouse's.
The answer as to which one is better should be obvious but SEG would probably be happy to offload its Louisiana division to others while Rouses probably has more reservations.
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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by wnetmacman »

Knight wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 3:27 pm If I were Albertson's and wanted to increase my presence in Louisiana, would I want Southeastern Grocers' perpetually failing Winn-Dixie stores, or would I want Rouse's?

Winn-Dixie has ran its course in Louisiana. Southeastern Grocers' possible bankruptcy could lead to the closure of many BI-LO, Fresco y Más, Harvey's, and WInn-Dixie stores and exits from several markets.

Rouse's has expanded into Mississippi and Alabama. It has store count and better market share. It would fit well with Albertson's footprint. Albertson's could expand pharmacy operations into Rouse's.
I wouldn't take either.

The WD stores are, at minimum, save for 2 locations, 20+ years old. They would need massive work to be viable again as a higher end grocer like Albertsons. Plus, they have come and failed. Albertsons was once all along the I-10 corridor, from Texas to Mississippi and beyond, but now they're concentrated in Lafayette, Baton Rouge, Lake Charles and Shreveport, plus a single store in Alexandria. They pulled out of all the other cities in Louisiana. They couldn't provide what Louisiana wants.

I do not believe Rouses is for sale, at any price. The Rouse family is very protective of their baby, and would stand to lose much by selling out. They don't have pharmacies because that takes away from grocery operations. Their deli and bakery operations are better than other operators, and it's part of their niche. Albertsons wouldn't be able to improve on anything with their purchase because there are too many direct conflicts.

I still say Brookshire Grocery Co or Brookshire Brothers would be a good fit for either Kroger or Albertsons.
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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by storewanderer »

I think Albertsons is focusing on improve current operations at this point vs. the "take whatever garbage is for sale" expansion that we saw in 2016.

Not really sure current operations are improving, but they're trying... I know they are trying...
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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by architect »

Combined reply here, I apologize in advance!
pseudo3d wrote: January 2nd, 2018, 10:03 pm
architect wrote: January 2nd, 2018, 8:51 pm Add a +1 for Market Street, but not as one of the two potential locations mentioned previously in the 2017 thread!

Apparently, Albertsons has purchased and is renovating the former Walmart Neighborhood Market at the southeast corner of Legacy and Lebanon in Frisco for a new Market Street location. Somewhat ironically, this location was previously an Albertsons which was closed in the LLC era. Market Street is currently running radio ads announcing hiring for the new store, but no official opening date has been announced yet. This should be an excellent spot for them, as the closest Albertsons-owned grocers are two Tom Thumbs located to the east and west at least a couple of miles away, plus another Market Street in the north end of the city.
Huh, and I thought the "switching places" in Plano was interesting (Market Street replacing the Wal-Mart and the Walmart Neighborhood Market replacing the Albertsons). The store exterior is quite nice and opened in 2003. It will compete head to head against the Kroger located catty-corner.
If there is anywhere where Albertsons could stand to win with Market Street, this could actually be the spot. Although the Kroger catty-corner is a mid-2000's store and is decent sized, it for some reason has a reputation for being sloppily run, which is rare for Kroger in the DFW area. Numerous reviews of this Kroger mention shoppers going out of their way to other grocers to avoid this store. In addition, the Tom Thumb to the east along Preston is fairly poorly managed (this is the store that I posted a picture of Lifestyle signage falling off the wall a year or so ago, which has since fallen completely - http://www.retailwatchers.com/viewtopic ... wall#p7884), while the Tom Thumb to the west is somewhat out of the way for the neighborhoods along the Legacy corridor. If Albertsons can put together a convincing store experience, they could have a winner here (though potentially at the expense of their own nearby stores).
wnetmacman wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 7:01 pmI wouldn't take either.

The WD stores are, at minimum, save for 2 locations, 20+ years old. They would need massive work to be viable again as a higher end grocer like Albertsons. Plus, they have come and failed. Albertsons was once all along the I-10 corridor, from Texas to Mississippi and beyond, but now they're concentrated in Lafayette, Baton Rouge, Lake Charles and Shreveport, plus a single store in Alexandria. They pulled out of all the other cities in Louisiana. They couldn't provide what Louisiana wants.

I do not believe Rouses is for sale, at any price. The Rouse family is very protective of their baby, and would stand to lose much by selling out. They don't have pharmacies because that takes away from grocery operations. Their deli and bakery operations are better than other operators, and it's part of their niche. Albertsons wouldn't be able to improve on anything with their purchase because there are too many direct conflicts.

I still say Brookshire Grocery Co or Brookshire Brothers would be a good fit for either Kroger or Albertsons.
I agree with wnetmacman on the Rouses front, but for a different reason. One of the biggest reasons why Rouses has been able to be so successful is a heavy regional product focus. A Rouses acquisition by Albertsons would not be productive for either party, as it would be difficult to integrate with Albertsons' other banners as they (with a few exceptions) all tend to be very streamlined in both marketing and merchandising (particularly following the Safeway acquisition). Market Street + a few Pavillions and Jewel-Osco locations are the main exceptions. For Albertsons to acquire Rouses but have to run the chain as a largely independent entity, they would not be realizing much benefit as a whole. This could also be disastrous for Rouses if Albertsons pulls a Dominicks-style Safeway move which drives away shoppers and opens the door for another competitor to overtake their position in the market.

As far as the south region goes, I think that Brookshires would be the move likely acquisition (that is, if the Brookshire family ever decides to put the company up for sale again). Culturally, they are quite similar to United, and are mainstream enough in their merchandising that Albertsons' product mix could fit in like a glove. The one hiccup could be Brookshires reputation for heavy staffing and good customer service, which Albertsons would surely try to cut back (potentially to the ire of shoppers). This would also bring the question of what to do with Brookshires' warehouses in Tyler and Monroe. If Albertsons was to close either (particularly the Tyler warehouse), any semblance of customer loyalty would go down the drain. On the other hand, this would give Albertsons a stronghold in East Texas and portions of Arkansas along with a strong competitor to Kroger in Shreveport-Bossier. Side note, Albertsons is not exactly concentrated in Shreveport anymore, as they only have one store in the entire metro following the Bossier Albertsons closure last year.

I doubt that Brookshire Brothers is even really a consideration, as their largest market is Lufkin, and most of their store base is in economically-stagnant areas.
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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by pseudo3d »

storewanderer wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 8:15 pm I think Albertsons is focusing on improve current operations at this point vs. the "take whatever garbage is for sale" expansion that we saw in 2016.
Reacquiring some of the Haggen stores only for them to start closing was a questionable move. Andronico's, Paul's, Lamb's, The Fresh Market, and G&G Supermarket all have had some really uneven and mixed results.
wnetmacman wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 7:01 pm
I wouldn't take either.

The WD stores are, at minimum, save for 2 locations, 20+ years old. They would need massive work to be viable again as a higher end grocer like Albertsons. Plus, they have come and failed. Albertsons was once all along the I-10 corridor, from Texas to Mississippi and beyond, but now they're concentrated in Lafayette, Baton Rouge, Lake Charles and Shreveport, plus a single store in Alexandria. They pulled out of all the other cities in Louisiana. They couldn't provide what Louisiana wants.

I do not believe Rouses is for sale, at any price. The Rouse family is very protective of their baby, and would stand to lose much by selling out. They don't have pharmacies because that takes away from grocery operations. Their deli and bakery operations are better than other operators, and it's part of their niche. Albertsons wouldn't be able to improve on anything with their purchase because there are too many direct conflicts.

I still say Brookshire Grocery Co or Brookshire Brothers would be a good fit for either Kroger or Albertsons.
I did some looking and it doesn't really look like Albertsons conflicts with Rouses directly save for a spot or two in Lafayette. If Albertsons gave up their Louisiana stores to Rouses while letting Rouses flexibility in what it does, it might end up working out, but I understand why the Rouses don't want to sell. I wouldn't be surprised if Albertsons approached them, and were rebuffed. Back when Albertsons was expanding into new markets and Dahl's was a bigger force in Des Moines, Albertsons approached them to buy them out but Dahl's told them to screw off and Albertsons bought and converted some warehouse food stores instead (talk about "whatever garbage is for sale")

However, a lot of the Albertsons "death" in Louisiana (at least prior to LLC) was because of the failure of the Houston Division (and by extension, the company post-ASC). Ironically, the death since Safeway was because of the existence of the Houston Division (go figure). As for New Orleans, Albertsons was never able to adapt to the market, but then again, few really have (Rouses bought their way in, and Walmart muscled in).
architect wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 8:22 pm As far as the south region goes, I think that Brookshires would be the move likely acquisition (that is, if the Brookshire family ever decides to put the company up for sale again). Culturally, they are quite similar to United, and are mainstream enough in their merchandising that Albertsons' product mix could fit in like a glove. The one hiccup could be Brookshires reputation for heavy staffing and good customer service, which Albertsons would surely try to cut back (potentially to the ire of shoppers). This would also bring the question of what to do with Brookshires' warehouses in Tyler and Monroe. If Albertsons was to close either (particularly the Tyler warehouse), any semblance of customer loyalty would go down the drain. On the other hand, this would give Albertsons a stronghold in East Texas and portions of Arkansas along with a strong competitor to Kroger in Shreveport-Bossier. Side note, Albertsons is not exactly concentrated in Shreveport anymore, as they only have one store in the entire metro following the Bossier Albertsons closure last year.

I doubt that Brookshire Brothers is even really a consideration, as their largest market is Lufkin, and most of their store base is in economically-stagnant areas.
I think that the existing heavy overlap of Brookshires (especially pertaining to Super 1 Foods and the distribution centers, not to mention other things like Spring Market) would preclude that, unless board-room problems tear apart the company. Brookshire Brothers is even worse, as their store base is concentrated in rural areas with very small stores. If they filed for bankruptcy and put up the stores on auction I could see that happening, but it's very unlikely.

Edit: Updated the list as West Sacramento is closing, with the company citing it as being "underperforming and not meeting company goals"
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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by storewanderer »

This has been a pretty rough store for decades. But it has always done decent volume. The Big Lots in the center is closing too. Back in the 90's, this was one of Safeway's few larger stores in Sacramento area.

Maybe the neighborhood has declined to the point that there are just too many issues with the store. The Rite Aid in the shopping center was remodeled recently.

The shopping center is not very good. Raleys corporate office (or part of it) is nearby and they have a store nearby that is in tip top shape and much nicer than the neighborhood. I think the Raleys may have been downsized in square footage at some point also.
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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by wnetmacman »

pseudo3d wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 11:02 pm I did some looking and it doesn't really look like Albertsons conflicts with Rouses directly save for a spot or two in Lafayette. If Albertsons gave up their Louisiana stores to Rouses while letting Rouses flexibility in what it does, it might end up working out, but I understand why the Rouses don't want to sell. I wouldn't be surprised if Albertsons approached them, and were rebuffed. Back when Albertsons was expanding into new markets and Dahl's was a bigger force in Des Moines, Albertsons approached them to buy them out but Dahl's told them to screw off and Albertsons bought and converted some warehouse food stores instead (talk about "whatever garbage is for sale")
You may want to update your Rouses/Albertsons maps a little. Rouses has 9 stores in Baton Rouge plus Denham Springs, and 3 stores in Lafayette. Being bought out by Albertsons wouldn't fly; there's just too much overlap. They may not be right next door, but any combination would be overwhelming.
pseudo3d wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 11:02 pmHowever, a lot of the Albertsons "death" in Louisiana (at least prior to LLC) was because of the failure of the Houston Division (and by extension, the company post-ASC). Ironically, the death since Safeway was because of the existence of the Houston Division (go figure). As for New Orleans, Albertsons was never able to adapt to the market, but then again, few really have (Rouses bought their way in, and Walmart muscled in).
Only ONE store closed because of the Houston Division closure; a store in Sulphur that remains Kroger to this day. Only TWO stores have been closed since Safeway that were a part of the former Houston division; Denham Springs, that should never have been opened, and Mandeville, a lease expiration. Can't blame on either. Many were closed during the LLC reign, and they were a large part of 90's Albertsons overexpansion.
pseudo3d wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 11:02 pm
architect wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 8:22 pm As far as the south region goes, I think that Brookshires would be the move likely acquisition (that is, if the Brookshire family ever decides to put the company up for sale again). Culturally, they are quite similar to United, and are mainstream enough in their merchandising that Albertsons' product mix could fit in like a glove. The one hiccup could be Brookshires reputation for heavy staffing and good customer service, which Albertsons would surely try to cut back (potentially to the ire of shoppers). This would also bring the question of what to do with Brookshires' warehouses in Tyler and Monroe. If Albertsons was to close either (particularly the Tyler warehouse), any semblance of customer loyalty would go down the drain. On the other hand, this would give Albertsons a stronghold in East Texas and portions of Arkansas along with a strong competitor to Kroger in Shreveport-Bossier. Side note, Albertsons is not exactly concentrated in Shreveport anymore, as they only have one store in the entire metro following the Bossier Albertsons closure last year.

I doubt that Brookshire Brothers is even really a consideration, as their largest market is Lufkin, and most of their store base is in economically-stagnant areas.
I think that the existing heavy overlap of Brookshires (especially pertaining to Super 1 Foods and the distribution centers, not to mention other things like Spring Market) would preclude that, unless board-room problems tear apart the company. Brookshire Brothers is even worse, as their store base is concentrated in rural areas with very small stores. If they filed for bankruptcy and put up the stores on auction I could see that happening, but it's very unlikely.
BGC and BB are two decidedly opposite cousins. BB is employee owned, and indeed does serve largely rural areas with smaller stores.

BGC, however, is still controlled by members of the Brookshire family, mainly Brad Brookshire, grandson of WT Brookshire, and son of Bruce Brookshire. WT was the one who broke off from BB and kept his Tyler stores. Bruce was largely responsible for the company's explosive growth from the 70's to the 90's. Brad has vested family interest in keeping things going, and has been the company's biggest cheerleader since he took it back over a couple of years ago. He jettisoned their manufacturing capabilities to save money, and has the company in a good place. I don't see anybody going after them; I just think they'd be a good target for a larger company to take over.

The jury on Spring Market is still out; I went in one a year ago, and while it wasn't a bad store, it was essentially a carbon copy of what it replaced, minus the pharmacy. What it replaced wasn't that great...
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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by pseudo3d »

wnetmacman wrote: January 4th, 2018, 7:57 pm You may want to update your Rouses/Albertsons maps a little. Rouses has 9 stores in Baton Rouge plus Denham Springs, and 3 stores in Lafayette. Being bought out by Albertsons wouldn't fly; there's just too much overlap. They may not be right next door, but any combination would be overwhelming.
Even accounting for LeBlanc's and Matherne's, there's actually just three in East Baton Rouge Parish with a fourth under construction. 7 Albertsons exist. With the current spread, the former Matherne's is the only one that could pose a problem. The main problem with a Rouses/Albertsons merger is Rouses not wanting to sell out.

Only ONE store closed because of the Houston Division closure; a store in Sulphur that remains Kroger to this day. Only TWO stores have been closed since Safeway that were a part of the former Houston division; Denham Springs, that should never have been opened, and Mandeville, a lease expiration. Can't blame on either. Many were closed during the LLC reign, and they were a large part of 90's Albertsons overexpansion.
Interestingly, the two that closed since Safeway (in southern Louisiana at least) were opened during the LLC era. The LLC era closed the store in Lafayette, a Super Saver or two, and the store in Plank, LA (which opened in a former Kmart in 1996) was shuttered in 2006. (link).

But in general, there were several stores in Louisiana (including northern Louisiana and Alexandria) that just were built in the wrong places and never served as grocery stores again. Three of the New Orleans stores were flat-out closed and that comprised almost half of the 7 stores in the area when they pulled out. Not that they had a lot of choices in the matter, I do remember reading A&P trying to block Albertsons from taking any Schwegmann stores back when they went under (though they did end up taking one or part of one, apparently). Plus (and I may be wrong on this) all of the New Orleans stores were built post-1999 when they started to do stuff like the shopper's cards. If Albertsons had actually bought Schwegmann in 1998 when Kohlberg was still operating it and rebranded it to "Schwegmann by Albertsons" not unlike what they did to Seessel's, then they might've had more success with New Orleans but with the ASC purchase haunting them and the changes to the company in the early 2000s it's unlikely they would've made the cut anyway.
BGC, however, is still controlled by members of the Brookshire family, mainly Brad Brookshire, grandson of WT Brookshire, and son of Bruce Brookshire. WT was the one who broke off from BB and kept his Tyler stores. Bruce was largely responsible for the company's explosive growth from the 70's to the 90's. Brad has vested family interest in keeping things going, and has been the company's biggest cheerleader since he took it back over a couple of years ago. He jettisoned their manufacturing capabilities to save money, and has the company in a good place. I don't see anybody going after them; I just think they'd be a good target for a larger company to take over.

The jury on Spring Market is still out; I went in one a year ago, and while it wasn't a bad store, it was essentially a carbon copy of what it replaced, minus the pharmacy. What it replaced wasn't that great...
Right, Brookshires is a pretty poor fit for Albertsons due to the overlap they have with them in North Texas (especially since they already have United). I actually think that the rumor about them being for sale a year or two ago was because H-E-B really WAS interested and had the ear of the board, but Brad didn't want to. (Smart choice, frankly). The thing about BB is that even if they were in financial distress, they would probably owe money to their supplier, GSC (C&S), who would take the stores and sell them to their own members like Arlan's Market.
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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by Knight »

pseudo3d wrote: January 3rd, 2018, 6:13 pm The answer as to which one is better should be obvious but SEG would probably be happy to offload its Louisiana division to others while Rouses probably has more reservations.
Southeastern Grocers would be smart to unload its "Winn-Dixie Lousiana" and "Winn-Dixie Alabama and Mississippi" regions. Publix's new store activity in Alabama is increasing. I project that activity to extend into Mississippi in the future.
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Re: Albertsons/Safeway 2018: Openings and Closings

Post by architect »

Add Market Street's Manfield store to the list too; it is supposed to be opening in March according to a Facebook post from an employee at the Colleyville store. The Mansfield location is also listed on their careers site; however, they are not hiring yet.

Also, take this with a grain of salt, but a Dallas Market Street job listing for is also now appearing on LinkedIn. However, this could just be a misnomer for another store in the DFW area. It would be exciting if Market Street is actually looking at a Dallas store location.
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