Well, technically, they're remodeling Albertsons stores, and no one said Safeway was exclusive to the West Coast, because Safeway in Washington DC was around back in the...1930s?klkla wrote:This statement certainly makes sense... but then again who would have thought that they would open three Safeway stores in Florida?pseudo3d wrote:They're not going to (or at least, shouldn't) expand Market Street (or Amigos) outside of the United division, just like they won't expand Pavilions outside of SoCal.
I think Albertsons uses a dart board to make decisions about branding and decor packages, e.t.c... They're making a lot of decisions but there doesn't seem to be any strategy.
Anyway, there does seem to be a strategy. Generally, I can see a few patterns developing...
- They want people to return to the store they loved and lost.
- Albertsons stores get LLC décor, Safeway/Vons stores get the "Lifestyle 2.0" or the regular Lifestyle for second-tier store.
- Considerations are made for the stronger banner.
Unfortunately, some of those "rules" fall in conflict with each other...I posted a thread in a different subforum where Albertsons was to reopen a Safeway as an Albertsons with Albertsons décor, but the shoppers didn't like it so it will reopen as a Safeway...and take some more time reopening because of the swap.
The Haggen core stores are different in that they don't have a store to go back to. A good idea might be to...
- Conduct surveys regarding what Haggen shoppers actually want once the acquisition dust settles. If Haggen's regulars flee out of principle, then might as well as take Haggen to the back of the house and put it out of its misery.
- Pick one Haggen store to convert to an Albertsons early on with the surveys in mind. Close for a few days to convert, keep all employees.
- From this point, and how things fare afterwards, there are three options.
1. If things go disastrously in trying to save Haggen, then quietly convert the stores to Safeway or Albertsons, either by closing temporarily or just hanging up a banner one of these days.
2. If things go well and the Haggen name starts to recover, then keep it as an upscale brand for the Seattle division, perhaps by converting Safeway or Albertsons stores later (this is unlikely to happen).
3. Hybridize the stores by rebranding them as Safeway or Albertsons but keeping certain programs (i.e. the bakery) as Haggen.