United Supermarkets announces a few more stores...in Lubbock
Posted: August 31st, 2016, 7:27 am
http://www.kcbd.com/story/32428508/unit ... in-lubbock
This one I missed, but it appears that United Supermarkets is doubling down in Lubbock, building out a United store at a site with a gas station and a nice parking lot built five years ago that never got a real store, plus another store currently under construction, plus remodels at 7 of 9 of the stores they have in town (they unquestionably dominate Lubbock), AND an expansion of their DC.
While they've got the Lubbock market nailed down (there's a Natural Grocers, a Sprouts, and four Walmarts) and it's good that they're expanding (with the Lawrence Bros. buyout), I just can't help but wonder if this is really the right move. They've got one of the best, most untarnished names in the entire ABS/SWY chain and they haven't done a lot with it. None of their stores are particularly big (they all look around 40k square feet) and since the Albertsons buyout, Market Street in Dallas has gone quiet. The DC they built to service Dallas is just two doors down from the Tom Thumb warehouse, so I don't know if those will be consolidated. (In fact, I dare say the question is up in there if Market Street Dallas combines with the Dallas division somehow). It just seems like they can do so much more with their brands. Bring on the 100k square foot Market Street stores! Play ball with Fiesta Mart in Dallas with Amigos stores! You have the Albertsons Market brand, so expand to Oklahoma and do it under that name to avoid THEIR "United Supermarkets"! Develop a store with more general merchandise! Attack Waco with new stores that one-up H-E-B! Renovate flagging Tom Thumb stores on the edges of the Metroplex to new Market Street stores!
It was widely theorized that Albertsons LLC bought United as a defensive measure (perhaps a symbiotic agreement) to hold off H-E-B, so it has to be executed properly. You can't wait and do nothing as H-E-B starts slamming into the wall and you definitely can't hedge your bets on H-E-B botching a market entrance.
That's not to say they won't do these things eventually, but I'm confused...why play it safe in Lubbock when you can do better?
This one I missed, but it appears that United Supermarkets is doubling down in Lubbock, building out a United store at a site with a gas station and a nice parking lot built five years ago that never got a real store, plus another store currently under construction, plus remodels at 7 of 9 of the stores they have in town (they unquestionably dominate Lubbock), AND an expansion of their DC.
While they've got the Lubbock market nailed down (there's a Natural Grocers, a Sprouts, and four Walmarts) and it's good that they're expanding (with the Lawrence Bros. buyout), I just can't help but wonder if this is really the right move. They've got one of the best, most untarnished names in the entire ABS/SWY chain and they haven't done a lot with it. None of their stores are particularly big (they all look around 40k square feet) and since the Albertsons buyout, Market Street in Dallas has gone quiet. The DC they built to service Dallas is just two doors down from the Tom Thumb warehouse, so I don't know if those will be consolidated. (In fact, I dare say the question is up in there if Market Street Dallas combines with the Dallas division somehow). It just seems like they can do so much more with their brands. Bring on the 100k square foot Market Street stores! Play ball with Fiesta Mart in Dallas with Amigos stores! You have the Albertsons Market brand, so expand to Oklahoma and do it under that name to avoid THEIR "United Supermarkets"! Develop a store with more general merchandise! Attack Waco with new stores that one-up H-E-B! Renovate flagging Tom Thumb stores on the edges of the Metroplex to new Market Street stores!
It was widely theorized that Albertsons LLC bought United as a defensive measure (perhaps a symbiotic agreement) to hold off H-E-B, so it has to be executed properly. You can't wait and do nothing as H-E-B starts slamming into the wall and you definitely can't hedge your bets on H-E-B botching a market entrance.
That's not to say they won't do these things eventually, but I'm confused...why play it safe in Lubbock when you can do better?