Retail Watchers

The Westheimer/Shepherd store wasn't doing that well. It had some of the lowest produce sales in the region (not the lowest profit or the highest shrink--and as for how I know this, let's just say some paperwork got left out). The traffic snarls in the area prevent left turns at the nearby stopligh...

It’s a typo; the second half of the article was meant to discuss potential growth, and was implying that Aldi is likely struggling in Southern California so don’t expect them in Northern. I frequent the Aldi in Laguna Woods and tend to agree with the author — while it’s just one store and I don’t ha...

The Lifestyles interior is still very modern; the renovation looks nice. At least Albertsons/Safeway is committed to making the former Safeway family of stores look uniform. Meanwhile, Albertsons is a hodgepodge of various designs...

I wonder why Meijer is focusing on the Midwest instead of moving down toward Kentucky/Tennessee. Is it that Walmart's presence is stronger in the South than the Michigan/Ohio/Wisconsin area? Yes, Walmart is much stronger in the South than it is in the Midwest. In areas where both chains compete, Me...

Meijer has acknowledged it purchased land and began plans to enter the MSP market, but ultimately suspended those plans. MSP is frequently cited as having too much grocery retail, so that probably factored into their decision. Hy-Vee’s aggressive expansion plus Kroger’s rumored courtship of Cub Food...

They also seem to know how to keep stores open because they haven't closed even 1/10 the number of stores that Albertsons, Ralphs, and Vons have closed in SoCal over the past decade. Probably because it’s much smaller and most of its stores are located in the Inland Empire — a region that, as a who...

They also seem to know how to keep stores open because they haven't closed even 1/10 the number of stores that Albertsons, Ralphs, and Vons have closed in SoCal over the past decade. Probably because it’s much smaller and most of its stores are located in the Inland Empire — a region that, as a who...

I live near the Irvine distribution center and have noticed an increase in the number of trucks coming in and going out wearing an Albertsons livery; I rarely see a Vons’ these days. I’m pondering if this is how the ticks are dispatched, or if the Vons’ trucks are being repainted into an Albertsons’...

Remodels are generally influenced by a number of factors, including the condition of the store, the time passed since its last remodel, the performance of a store, the intended longevity, etc. Consider Kroger Company’s renovations: two identcal stores, built around the same time period, were renovat...