The merger is pretty doubtful, but you have to remember that the FTC uses zip codes and city limits to make decisions. So... The smaller Ralphs Fresh Fare to the East is in a different city, Newport Beach, and thus is completely safe with nothing overlapping anywhere nearby. Remember that the FTC allowed Vons and Albertsons literally across the street from each other a couple hundred feet apart to survive the last merger because they were in different zip codes and/or in different cities. There is no evidence they're going to let up on their bone headed and antiquated ways which allow stores across the street from each other with no other competitors to survive but then force a store 15+ miles away elsewhere to divest... It's really nuts. Obviously the self-selection strategy that they're trying to pull off with C&S is probably going to do a better job than the government would, but there's still no way they'd let that Newport store go as even though it's small it has big baskets going out. The two Ralphs get completely different clientele. Also the "Middle" Ralphs is frequently used for publicity including the Angels and Ducks, the Ducks were just there yesterday.brendenmoney wrote: ↑January 16th, 2024, 10:59 pm I visit this store not too long ago. The only changes made to this store were the subsequent removal of any sort of "Fresh Fare" branding from the store, as well as the road sign which has now been replaced by a regular Ralphs oval sign, but the store still retains the Fresh Fare interior it received when it was renovated in 2016-2017, it's simply a normal Ralphs with a fresh fare interior. I don't remember the exact time it was renovated, but I know it was renovated into the Fresh Fare format at that time. Before this renovation, it was a traditional Ralphs which previously had the early 2010's Kroger interior (Kroger's version of PFH) that they used at the time. The store and only carried the Fresh Fare banner for about five years before converting back to a traditional Ralphs. Perhaps the upgrade this store had at the time was an experiment to see if the Fresh Fare format would be successful at this store so they could consolidate the Fresh Fare store a couple blocks away into this store, but was unsuccessful...
It is surprising that these stores have existed so close to each other for so long, speaking that both Kroger, Safeway and Albertsons over the years have worked to eliminate overlaps like these, another example being the two Albertsons stores just a couple blocks away from each other in San Clemente that both existed for many years, but one was recently converted to Pavilions officially removing that overlap. This street will be an area to watch if the Kroger/Albertsons goes through, as it wouldn't be shocking if the FTC requires Kroger to divest both Ralphs in order to keep the larger newer Vons in the vicinity.
So that leaves it between the "downgraded" Ralphs that obviously is some sort of marketing change test and the Vons. The Vons is most likely leased and it's expansion was controversial and somewhat opposed by the locals, I remember something about the omelet restaurant that was demolished. It's been a while. They also were forced into some kind of very restrictive logistics scheme due to the demands of the neighborhood which ironically does not apply to anyone else on that strip. The Vons is therefore a curfew store but has morning business and I've seen chaos in there with pallets blocking aisles and such. The Vons does have good parking. The Ralphs I believe is owned and is busier than the Vons I believe, but that perception could also be due to the parking configuration. Albertsons also has reduced their store count in the area already, closing their store a couple of miles away at Harbor and Wilson which has become that dazzling Northgate store that I think even Wegmans, Bristol Farms, Central Market and Eataly could learn a lot from. Finally, just South on Newport is a Pavilions.
So I would bet 100% the Vons is in the divest list to C&S, and that removes any other issues of overlap in the neighborhoods, zip codes, etc. It is easy to perceive this as a 3 store strip, but you have to look at the neighborhood more closely and then it becomes a 4 store neighborhood with that Pavilions further down Newport Blvd and the Vons becomes the "mess in the middle."