ALDI to acquire Winn-Dixie

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Re: ALDI to acquire Winn-Dixie

Post by storewanderer »

mbz321 wrote: March 16th, 2024, 5:35 pm

There was a post I saw on Reddit the other day calling out Aldi ice cream as having big ingredient changes with more cheap fillers added in, and of course with the price staying the same. It's a bit disappointing for a company that was once striving towards selling less processed items.
The ice cream category is doing a lot of strange stuff lately.

More and more products even in brands like Dryers/Edys and Breyers are "frozen dairy dessert" and not ice cream. A lot of Kroger's private label ice cream is also now "frozen dairy dessert." It seems the flavors that have the most mix-ins are often "frozen dairy dessert" now.

Some brands still seem to be all ice cream no matter what flavor you pick- Signature Select is one of those last I checked but it has been a while since I haven't liked most of what I've bought, so is Thrifty, so are regionals like Tillamook and Umpqua.

Also last summer I may or may not have posted this here but I went to Sonic somewhere out of town and they had a 1.99 Small Milkshake Promotion. I took a Strawberry Shake and very much enjoyed it. A few weeks later I went to Sonic in Reno and ordered another of those shakes. It was terrible- airy, tasted like flat sugar water, and just terrible. I couldn't figure it out. It turns out, between the timing of my first and second visits, Sonic made a change in the milkfat concent of its soft serve product. They previously used something that had the amount of milkfat needed to qualify as "ice cream" but then late last summer switched to something with less milkfat so no longer qualifies as "ice cream."
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Winn Dixie store transitioning to Aldi

Post by jipper »

The Winn Dixie near me (about 25 years old) is closing in early November and transitioning to an Aldi. As of October 8, the changes are already starting.
  • All of the little non food stuff (toys and those kind of small items)were put in baskets and marked down.
  • The end caps are being dismantled and packaged for transport.
  • The cases that hold the bulk chicken wings and breasts have been operating but are empty and have been for a few weeks. Perhaps they have been shipped to the other store in town.
I have been told that the liquor store is going to stay and retain the Winn Dixie name. Will be interesting to see if it stays open during the construction. My guess is that it will as it is the only liquor store on this side of town.

Through all of this, the staff seems to be remarkably upbeat.
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Re: ALDI to acquire Winn-Dixie

Post by storewanderer »

How many Winn Dixies have closed and converted to Aldi so far?
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Re: ALDI to acquire Winn-Dixie

Post by jipper »

How many Winn Dixies have closed and converted to Aldi so far?
I am not sure how many have changed so far.

Here is the link to a blog that goes in to detail about which stores are switching and when. It seems to be accurate as our local Winn Dixie closing date is the same as on the blog post.

My Florida Retail Blog - W/D conversions
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Re: ALDI to acquire Winn-Dixie

Post by storewanderer »

jipper wrote: October 11th, 2024, 4:07 am
How many Winn Dixies have closed and converted to Aldi so far?
I am not sure how many have changed so far.

Here is the link to a blog that goes in to detail about which stores are switching and when. It seems to be accurate as our local Winn Dixie closing date is the same as on the blog post.

My Florida Retail Blog - W/D conversions
Looks like they are going full speed ahead and will have 20% of stores converted or in conversion by the end of 2024. This would align with a plan to complete this project in 5 years.

I guess if customers shop them that will be great. I think really it will be great for Publix.

I find it interesting they are keeping the liquor operations in some of these stores- how hard is it to transfer a liquor license in FL? It will also be interesting to see if they try to run the liquor like an Aldi (limited assortment) or what exactly they do there. My guess is they will keep it exactly as it is and it will be Aldi in name only for liquor.
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Re: ALDI to acquire Winn-Dixie

Post by jipper »

I find it interesting they are keeping the liquor operations in some of these stores- how hard is it to transfer a liquor license in FL? It will also be interesting to see if they try to run the liquor like an Aldi (limited assortment) or what exactly they do there. My guess is they will keep it exactly as it is and it will be Aldi in name only for liquor.
My understanding, from a reliable source, is that it will remain a Winn Dixie branded liquor store, as you thought. Probably the same selection that they have now, which is pretty extensive. So there will be an Aldi market right next door to the W/D liquor store.

As far as liquor licenses in Florida, I don't know the details but do know that it is not an easy process. May be the reason that they are keeping it Winn Dixie rather than changing over.
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Re: ALDI to acquire Winn-Dixie

Post by rwsandiego »

jipper wrote: October 12th, 2024, 4:02 am
I find it interesting they are keeping the liquor operations in some of these stores- how hard is it to transfer a liquor license in FL? It will also be interesting to see if they try to run the liquor like an Aldi (limited assortment) or what exactly they do there. My guess is they will keep it exactly as it is and it will be Aldi in name only for liquor.
My understanding, from a reliable source, is that it will remain a Winn Dixie branded liquor store...
This is a smart move. It avoids the issue of another company opening a new "Winn-Dixie" chain, as Aldi would still actively use the name.
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Re: ALDI to acquire Winn-Dixie

Post by storewanderer »

rwsandiego wrote: October 12th, 2024, 2:07 pm
jipper wrote: October 12th, 2024, 4:02 am
I find it interesting they are keeping the liquor operations in some of these stores- how hard is it to transfer a liquor license in FL? It will also be interesting to see if they try to run the liquor like an Aldi (limited assortment) or what exactly they do there. My guess is they will keep it exactly as it is and it will be Aldi in name only for liquor.
My understanding, from a reliable source, is that it will remain a Winn Dixie branded liquor store...
This is a smart move. It avoids the issue of another company opening a new "Winn-Dixie" chain, as Aldi would still actively use the name.
Didn't they say they were going to keep some stores running as Winn Dixie long term?

Maybe these liquor stores are what they meant, but I don't think every Winn Dixie is suitable to be converted to Aldi.
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The W/D to Aldi transition has begun...

Post by jipper »

As of Tuesday, October 15, the local Winn Dixie store has begun to wind down operations.

These departments are now closed and empty:
  • produce
  • meat
  • dairy
  • all frozen foods
  • flowers
Oddly enough, the refrigeration for these empty units is still running. Wonder if there is a reason for that.

The store has not been restocked in a while so what is left is being consolidated on upper shelves and pushed to the end of the aisles. There were workers sitting on the floor cleaning the bottom shelves. Starting today, everything is 20% off and sale prices are no longer valid in this store.

The projected closing date is November 10, but I believe they will be done at the end of October, if not before. According to an email I got a few days ago, the liquor store at this location will remain open even during the building renovation.
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Re: The W/D to Aldi transition has begun...

Post by cw06 »

jipper wrote: October 16th, 2024, 5:20 am As of Tuesday, October 15, the local Winn Dixie store has begun to wind down operations.

These departments are now closed and empty:
  • produce
  • meat
  • dairy
  • all frozen foods
  • flowers
Oddly enough, the refrigeration for these empty units is still running. Wonder if there is a reason for that.

The store has not been restocked in a while so what is left is being consolidated on upper shelves and pushed to the end of the aisles. There were workers sitting on the floor cleaning the bottom shelves. Starting today, everything is 20% off and sale prices are no longer valid in this store.

The projected closing date is November 10, but I believe they will be done at the end of October, if not before. According to an email I got a few days ago, the liquor store at this location will remain open even during the building renovation.
The refrigerator units would start stinking to high heaven if they were shut off.
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