Retail Watchers

Interesting news out of Orlando: Axium Healthcare Pharmacy, a specialty pharmacy provider owned by Kroger, is opening an office in Lake Mary. Could this be laying the groundwork for a future retail entry into the state?

Link: http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/blog ... lding.html

I don't see it happening. They do already have one pharmacy in Florida attached to a c-store somewhere up north.

architect wrote:Interesting news out of Orlando: Axium Healthcare Pharmacy, a specialty pharmacy provider owned by Kroger, is opening an office in Lake Mary. Could this be laying the groundwork for a future retail entry into the state?

Link: http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/blog ... lding.html

Kroger already has a few convenience stores, a pharmacy, and a Harris Teeter in Florida.

Further expansion in Florida for Kroger is possible. Its Atlanta, Mid-Atlantic, Nashville, and Harris Teeter divisions are seeing Publix expand across their territories. Kroger could acquire a current participant with significant store count in Florida, expand the Harris Teeter division across Florida, and/or go in organically with its Marketplace hypermarket stores.

Knight wrote:Kroger could acquire a current participant with significant store count in Florida, expand the Harris Teeter division across Florida, and/or go in organically with its Marketplace hypermarket stores.

I see part 1 being the most likely choice. Kroger, outside a few stores here and there, hasn't grown organically in over 20 years. They go in, buy a competitor, and take over. Only problem with Florida is that the only competitor left there is Winn-Dixie. And they won't go where they can't be #1; they would have to put a lot into WD. I can't see even Kroger willing to put that type of investment into 600 stores. And they would have to do the same for Bi-Lo and Harvey's. I'm not seeing that happening.

storewanderer wrote:I don't see it happening. They do already have one pharmacy in Florida attached to a c-store somewhere up north.

Yep, it's at a Tom Thumb in Pensacola (or it was as late as 2009):


Tom Thumb with Kroger Pharmacy (Pensacola FL) by Aaron Slater, on Flickr

Tom Thumb with Kroger Pharmacy (Pensacola FL) by Aaron Slater, on Flickr

Tom Thumb with Kroger Pharmacy (Pensacola FL) by Aaron Slater, on Flickr

wnetmacman wrote:

Knight wrote:Kroger could acquire a current participant with significant store count in Florida, expand the Harris Teeter division across Florida, and/or go in organically with its Marketplace hypermarket stores.

I see part 1 being the most likely choice. Kroger, outside a few stores here and there, hasn't grown organically in over 20 years. They go in, buy a competitor, and take over. Only problem with Florida is that the only competitor left there is Winn-Dixie. And they won't go where they can't be #1; they would have to put a lot into WD. I can't see even Kroger willing to put that type of investment into 600 stores. And they would have to do the same for Bi-Lo and Harvey's. I'm not seeing that happening.

I agree, W/D has been reinvented away from its core identity too many times. W/D is a Stater Brothers type operator for the southeast. They have tried to be someone else for too long.

They have never had a chance against the entrenched Publix which is about service and quality (not price).

They cannot compete against Walmart for obvious reasons (price price price and that's it).

There is a competition void in Florida. With all of the generalist grocers gone (A+P, Food Fair/Pantry Pride, Grand Union, Kmart Foods and many others), W/D should have fine tuned their appeal to their core demographics and it is a huge one (better service than Walmart and cheaper prices than Publix).

veteran+ wrote:

wnetmacman wrote:

Knight wrote:Kroger could acquire a current participant with significant store count in Florida, expand the Harris Teeter division across Florida, and/or go in organically with its Marketplace hypermarket stores.

I see part 1 being the most likely choice. Kroger, outside a few stores here and there, hasn't grown organically in over 20 years. They go in, buy a competitor, and take over. Only problem with Florida is that the only competitor left there is Winn-Dixie. And they won't go where they can't be #1; they would have to put a lot into WD. I can't see even Kroger willing to put that type of investment into 600 stores. And they would have to do the same for Bi-Lo and Harvey's. I'm not seeing that happening.

I agree, W/D has been reinvented away from its core identity too many times. W/D is a Stater Brothers type operator for the southeast. They have tried to be someone else for too long.

They have never had a chance against the entrenched Publix which is about service and quality (not price).

They cannot compete against Walmart for obvious reasons (price price price and that's it).

There is a competition void in Florida. With all of the generalist grocers gone (A+P, Food Fair/Pantry Pride, Grand Union, Kmart Foods and many others), W/D should have fine tuned their appeal to their core demographics and it is a huge one (better service than Walmart and cheaper prices than Publix).

That's probably what Albertsons/Safeway wants to go after. I wouldn't be surprised if the reason they decided to keep and renovate their last three stores was if they didn't have something in talks with Winn-Dixie already. Not a whole chain takeover, but rather picking and choosing stores.

pseudo3d wrote:That's probably what Albertsons/Safeway wants to go after. I wouldn't be surprised if the reason they decided to keep and renovate their last three stores was if they didn't have something in talks with Winn-Dixie already. Not a whole chain takeover, but rather picking and choosing stores.

What did you have in mind by picking and choosing? Albertsons/Safeway would choose their best stores leaving WD in even weaker shape afterwards? Or Albertsons/Safeway would just be buying stores in the the markets where they already have a store?

Personally I can see Albertsons/Safeway only interested in about 20% of Winn-Dixies stores. Needless to say that would be their best stores and that would leave Winn-Dixie even weaker afterwards.

klkla wrote:

pseudo3d wrote:That's probably what Albertsons/Safeway wants to go after. I wouldn't be surprised if the reason they decided to keep and renovate their last three stores was if they didn't have something in talks with Winn-Dixie already. Not a whole chain takeover, but rather picking and choosing stores.

What did you have in mind by picking and choosing? Albertsons/Safeway would choose their best stores leaving WD in even weaker shape afterwards? Or Albertsons/Safeway would just be buying stores in the the markets where they already have a store?

Personally I can see Albertsons/Safeway only interested in about 20% of Winn-Dixies stores. Needless to say that would be their best stores and that would leave Winn-Dixie even weaker afterwards.

Winn-Dixie would be picking stores, not Albertsons. Another thread discussed how BI-LO has divested stores in the recent past (last few years), and of course, Albertsons is no stranger to that, having gotten rid of 49 stores in 2008 which they sold to Publix. Some of them were profitable, but Albertsons made half a billion dollars off of that sale. Their market share might take a hit, but if they re-invest in their older stores, they can make the rest more profitable or at the very least make attractive enough stores to sell the company whole.

Expecting that to happen to Winn-Dixie is optimistic, of course, but Albertsons has showed that they can buy at least older stores. They bought A&P and Pathmark stores from A&P, and some of those didn't look the best (a cleanup and some streamlining went a long way), plus they also bought Raley's New Mexico stores, many of which had Lucky interiors and one that might've even been a Furr's design (link).

EDIT: To tie that into the main topic, Kroger would not do such a thing. They've capitalized on stores from dead or dying chains, but only in areas where it would increase their market share, not start it.