Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by pseudo3d »

Geographically, it's a weird concept for Publix to get closer to, say, Chicago, then continuing west at all. Mississippi is still left out in the cold while they go after the East Coast.
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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by jamcool »

veteran+ wrote: September 8th, 2021, 7:09 am I don't think I remember Publix ever entering a market (regardless of distribution logistics) and then withdrawing.

Where they go has to jive with their corporate ideology (political, buisiness friendly, union issues, State Labor department activity, etc.).

Entering Kentucky does not surprise me.

I would be shocked if Publix would ever consider the West Coast (unless seismic changes occur).
Maybe Arizona (a dry version of Florida) or Texas (buying Albertsons DFW and Houston stores?)
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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by retailfanmitchell019 »

jamcool wrote: September 8th, 2021, 4:15 pm Maybe Arizona (a dry version of Florida) or Texas (buying Albertsons DFW and Houston stores?)
I could see Publix buying the Houston-area Randalls someday. I don't see Albertsons exiting DFW anytime soon.
A Publix vs HEB battle would be fierce to say the least.
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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by Bagels »

storewanderer wrote: September 7th, 2021, 6:34 pm I think Meijer and Publix are going after entirely different customer bases.

Kroger was run okay in Louisville... not noticeably terrible or noticeably excellent... just okay.
I disagree - Meijer, Kroger and Publix are middle market grocers and largely chase the same consumers.

This will be interesting. Meijer has struggled in Louisville, to the point it threatened to withdraw from the market a decade ago. They stuck around but haven't grown beyond 6 stores (at least two are ex-Super K-Marts, IIRC).

As of last year, there's 43 Kroger, 16 Walmart Supercenters and 6 Meijer stores in the Louisville area, which has about 1.2M people. That's a lot of competition. Ultimately, I doubt the market will be able to absorb the selling space Publix adds, so if they're successful, there's going to less Krogers and/or Meijers...
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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by storewanderer »

Bagels wrote: September 8th, 2021, 5:05 pm I disagree - Meijer, Kroger and Publix are middle market grocers and largely chase the same consumers.

This will be interesting. Meijer has struggled in Louisville, to the point it threatened to withdraw from the market a decade ago. They stuck around but haven't grown beyond 6 stores (at least two are ex-Super K-Marts, IIRC).

As of last year, there's 43 Kroger, 16 Walmart Supercenters and 6 Meijer stores in the Louisville area, which has about 1.2M people. That's a lot of competition. Ultimately, I doubt the market will be able to absorb the selling space Publix adds, so if they're successful, there's going to less Krogers and/or Meijers...
Publix is an upper middle market grocer. That positioning is reflected in their mix, marketing, pricing, employee training, and product offering. Whether or not you find them to be upper middle market, that is the positioning they take. And if you talk to customers, they always view Publix as better than a middle market grocer.

Kroger is a middle market grocer (at best- that is being generous really lately). Meijer comes off as a middle to lower middle market grocer (lower is being a bit harsh; they run a clean store).

Louisville looks ripe for new competition to me. Meijer has such a low store count they are barely a factor. Publix may not even get store count much above 10-15 stores either so who knows how much of a factor they will really be. Kroger runs much higher volume (and larger size) stores than Publix.

If I lived in Louisville, I'd be very excited about the arrival of Publix. And I am not exactly a smashing fan of Publix. But given the options... Meijer and Publix would do it for me.
Last edited by storewanderer on September 8th, 2021, 6:02 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by veteran+ »

jamcool wrote: September 8th, 2021, 4:15 pm
veteran+ wrote: September 8th, 2021, 7:09 am I don't think I remember Publix ever entering a market (regardless of distribution logistics) and then withdrawing.

Where they go has to jive with their corporate ideology (political, buisiness friendly, union issues, State Labor department activity, etc.).

Entering Kentucky does not surprise me.

I would be shocked if Publix would ever consider the West Coast (unless seismic changes occur).
Maybe Arizona (a dry version of Florida) or Texas (buying Albertsons DFW and Houston stores?)
Publix does not buy old small stores and outdated larger stores. The stores would have to be of a certain caliber and they would not buy the better stores and have junk stores attached to the deal.

It has not been their way.....................
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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by buckguy »

Publix will buy outdated stores if they want the location and are willing to redo them. They did ground up replacements for several stores they picked up in Atlanta—the Ponce and outer Buckhead A&Ps and a former Kroger/Colonial in Ansley Park. They also were willing to go into “up and coming” areas that did not attract the existing chains.

Louisville probably could support a chain that’s a bit more upscale than Kroger. It’s not as dynamic an economy as Nashville, but one well-off enough that it could support them, plus there are smaller markets Publix can exploit in Kentucky.

Mississippi is one of the poorest states in the union, with often tremendous income divides in places like the Delta. There is neither the density overall or the density of potential customers in enough places for them to do a big push. The one place that might make sense would be the Gulf.
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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by Romr123 »

Louisville has the benefit for Publix of having their upper middle class pretty segregated into the eastern portion of the metro. Publix could cover 70% of the income of the city building 6-8 stores between I-64 and the river...one inside 264, the rest scattered around "the fashionable East side". I had a friend who made her career at corporate KFC---once she became a corporate manager she needed to move from the west side where her husband's family was to the East side...it was "just done".
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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by Bagels »

storewanderer wrote: September 8th, 2021, 5:56 pmPublix is an upper middle market grocer. That positioning is reflected in their mix, marketing, pricing, employee training, and product offering. Whether or not you find them to be upper middle market, that is the positioning they take. And if you talk to customers, they always view Publix as better than a middle market grocer.

Kroger is a middle market grocer (at best- that is being generous really lately). Meijer comes off as a middle to lower middle market grocer (lower is being a bit harsh; they run a clean store).

Louisville looks ripe for new competition to me. Meijer has such a low store count they are barely a factor. Publix may not even get store count much above 10-15 stores either so who knows how much of a factor they will really be. Kroger runs much higher volume (and larger size) stores than Publix.

If I lived in Louisville, I'd be very excited about the arrival of Publix. And I am not exactly a smashing fan of Publix. But given the options... Meijer and Publix would do it for me.
Publix, Kroger, Meijer and even Walmart are middle market grocers, largely competing for the same consumers. There's a reason why, for over 15 years, Publix's ads have frequently compared some aspects of their operation to Walmart. Many middle market consumers will split their purchases between Walmart and Publix, but those who shop more high-end stores like Whole Foods, purchase most all their groceries from there (but may stop at their nearest neighborhood grocery store midweek for convenience).

Publix, Kroger and Meijer have similar product assortments, and purchase the same produce and meat/seafood lots. Publix's deli and bakery has long been its signature and certainly edges Kroger and Meijer. and Meijer has the largest produce selection of any large traditional grocer in the country, but the rest of their offerings are similar. Publix differentiates itself through the in-store experience, but the trade off is that its prices are higher. Yes, some Kroger stores have difficulty with execution, but that's another topic :). I will add that it appears Smith's (at least in LV-area) has vastly improved the quality of their bakery selection, many stores that have been renovated feature a service bakery case. Almost on par with Publix...

Walmart focuses on produce/meat lots that provide the best value -- e.g. their green bell peepers may not be Instagram worthy, but the overall appearance is respectable and the taste is the same. But the stores they were building / operating a decade ago weren't that much different than Publix, Kroger & Meijer -- extensive produce, service deli and bakery offerings, etc. But they reduced their produce offerings (which vary by store, but in general you won't find butter nut squash in the heart of the summer, whereas most Kroger and Meijer stores will have it) and eliminated their service deli/bakery in many (most?) stores. What a shame... I really like their remodels -- very modern, compared to the "colorful" interiors that were widespread last decade.
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Re: Publix entering Louisville, KY in 2023

Post by retailfanmitchell019 »

Bagels wrote: September 11th, 2021, 3:37 pm
Publix, Kroger, Meijer and even Walmart are middle market grocers, largely competing for the same consumers. There's a reason why, for over 15 years, Publix's ads have frequently compared some aspects of their operation to Walmart. Many middle market consumers will split their purchases between Walmart and Publix, but those who shop more high-end stores like Whole Foods, purchase most all their groceries from there (but may stop at their nearest neighborhood grocery store midweek for convenience).

Walmart focuses on produce/meat lots that provide the best value -- e.g. their green bell peepers may not be Instagram worthy, but the overall appearance is respectable and the taste is the same. But the stores they were building / operating a decade ago weren't that much different than Publix, Kroger & Meijer -- extensive produce, service deli and bakery offerings, etc. But they reduced their produce offerings (which vary by store, but in general you won't find butter nut squash in the heart of the summer, whereas most Kroger and Meijer stores will have it) and eliminated their service deli/bakery in many (most?) stores. What a shame... I really like their remodels -- very modern, compared to the "colorful" interiors that were widespread last decade.
I would no way consider Walmart a "middle market grocer". With dirty stores, poor service and quality, not to mention the elimination of service deli and bakery in most stores, Walmart is truly a low-end grocer, a step above Grocery Outlet, but below WinCo and Food 4 Less.

Here's how I define grocery stores by class:
Low end: Walmart, Grocery Outlet, Save-A-Lot, Smart & Final, Food 4 Less, WinCo
Lower-middle end: Aldi, Sam's Club, Costco, BJ's, Food Lion, Amazon Fresh, Shoprite, Meijer
True middle end: Most Kroger banners, Winn-Dixie, Stater Bros, Target, Trader Joe's, most Ahold banners
Upper-middle end: Publix, Wegmans, HEB, Hy-Vee, most Albertsons banners, Sprouts, QFC, Mariano's, Harris Teeter
High end: Gelson's, Lunds/Byerlys, Whole Foods, Pavilions, Bristol Farms
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