Kroger remodeling Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store

Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. No non-grocery posts.
Post Reply
SamSpade
Store Manager
Store Manager
Posts: 1568
Joined: September 13th, 2015, 4:39 pm
Has thanked: 374 times
Been thanked: 57 times
Status: Offline

Kroger remodeling Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store

Post by SamSpade »

In 2019, 22 years after first opening, the Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store is receiving a major remodel.
Floor Planogram, Highlighted Changes
The store previously had a minor facelift that added a Starbucks kiosk, opened up the juniors / young men's apparel department and added the "Kroger style" aisle signs to grocery but nothing else. The exterior was painted 3 years ago based on photos on Google Maps.

If you've never seen a vintage Fred Meyer decor set, many photos are actually of this store (some of the generic Kroger Marketplace decor photos are mixed in).

I believe my mother reported that the newspaper showed the building permit at $2.5 million.
SamSpade
Store Manager
Store Manager
Posts: 1568
Joined: September 13th, 2015, 4:39 pm
Has thanked: 374 times
Been thanked: 57 times
Status: Offline

Re: Kroger remodeling Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store

Post by SamSpade »

The remodel of this store turned out pretty beautiful. It does have plain concrete floors (Sorry person on this forum that hates this) but Kroger made really great use of the available space. The store is laid out well and I thought I'd be annoyed by having 'natural choices' blended into the main store. However, it was just fine.

Also, despite not having "one way aisles" in the grocery department like Albertsons Co's and Walmart stores, it was OK at this store with a decent amount of space available in aisles. Unlike the stores in the Portland area, the layout mostly made sense.

This store now offers pickup (they converted a former tenant space) and a much enlarged pharmacy waiting area. They converted another tenant space (Chase bank seems to be trying to leave Kroger as a landlord) to the new pharmacy. Interestingly enough, the electronics department remained in its front of store location and was still quite large, obviously with less emphasis on photos and physical media. I didn't notice if books were in that department as this was mostly a grocery shopping trip.
TW-Upstate NY
Shift Manager
Shift Manager
Posts: 421
Joined: May 11th, 2009, 6:09 pm
Been thanked: 4 times
Status: Offline

Re: Kroger remodeling Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store

Post by TW-Upstate NY »

SamSpade wrote: June 18th, 2020, 9:12 am It does have plain concrete floors (Sorry person on this forum that hates this)
Since I have no plans to set foot in Idaho anytime soon, I guess it's OK :mrgreen:
veteran+
Valued Contributor
Valued Contributor
Posts: 2234
Joined: January 3rd, 2015, 7:53 am
Has thanked: 1204 times
Been thanked: 72 times
Status: Offline

Re: Kroger remodeling Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store

Post by veteran+ »

Love those concrete floors.

I prefer the polished ones though.

And the very best are the new ones with interesting tints.
cjd
Assistant Store Manager
Assistant Store Manager
Posts: 624
Joined: August 18th, 2018, 6:54 am
Has thanked: 3 times
Been thanked: 6 times
Status: Offline

Re: Kroger remodeling Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store

Post by cjd »

Concrete floors look fine in new build stores where they are built with this in mind. But in stores where the flooring is removed, it leads to uneven floors and old patterns and patches visible and doesn't look that great. Overall polished concrete does look nice with a tint I agree.
veteran+
Valued Contributor
Valued Contributor
Posts: 2234
Joined: January 3rd, 2015, 7:53 am
Has thanked: 1204 times
Been thanked: 72 times
Status: Offline

Re: Kroger remodeling Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store

Post by veteran+ »

cjd wrote: June 20th, 2020, 5:47 am Concrete floors look fine in new build stores where they are built with this in mind. But in stores where the flooring is removed, it leads to uneven floors and old patterns and patches visible and doesn't look that great. Overall polished concrete does look nice with a tint I agree.
I agree and would add that small spaces with those irregularities are even more unattractive.
TW-Upstate NY
Shift Manager
Shift Manager
Posts: 421
Joined: May 11th, 2009, 6:09 pm
Been thanked: 4 times
Status: Offline

Re: Kroger remodeling Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store

Post by TW-Upstate NY »

cjd wrote: June 20th, 2020, 5:47 am But in stores where the flooring is removed, it leads to uneven floors and old patterns and patches visible and doesn't look that great.
This happened in a local Wal-Mart with a twist. Store was expanded to a supercenter and the original section was left intact with the tile floor remaining in place and concrete in the new part. Several years later, tile was removed completely and there are numerous places you can see outlines of squares where the tiles were-not very attractive at all. Guess I shouldn't complain too much because at least they left the drop ceiling in place. And yes, open and exposed ceilings are another one of my pet peeves-they're downright ugly if you ask me.
Super S
Posts: 2690
Joined: April 1st, 2009, 9:27 pm
Has thanked: 11 times
Been thanked: 61 times
Status: Offline

Re: Kroger remodeling Idaho Falls Fred Meyer store

Post by Super S »

cjd wrote: June 20th, 2020, 5:47 am Concrete floors look fine in new build stores where they are built with this in mind. But in stores where the flooring is removed, it leads to uneven floors and old patterns and patches visible and doesn't look that great. Overall polished concrete does look nice with a tint I agree.
Fred Meyer has a lot of older stores, and those stores have seen some really bad conversions. The Longview, WA store, which opened in the mid-1970s, is one. You can still see tile marks in many areas of the store, plus many patch jobs from previous remodels and some uneven parts of the concrete which look like somebody tried patching with JB weld. The newer addition on the grocery end which is from around 2003 looks a little better but you can clearly tell which part of the store is newer. They didn't do this store any favors by removing the tile. This should be reserved for the newest locations. Then you have stores like the Salem Lancaster store which removed all of the drop ceilings and didn't even bother painting what is now exposed. Some old Kmarts actually look better.
Post Reply