🛒 Kroger-Albertsons Merger: National Impact
Posted: October 25th, 2023, 9:54 pm
A place to discuss the impact of the Kroger-Albertsons merger, at the national level affecting all US regions.
Crazy about retail.
https://www.retailwatchers.com/
They are still trying to work the merger... it isn't dead yet.retailfanmitchell019 wrote: ↑October 31st, 2023, 12:02 am In the past few weeks, there has been a deafening silence in terms of merger news, apart from this op-ed: https://progressivegrocer.com/opinion-k ... pers-alike
I wonder if this deal is possibly over... I wouldn't be surprised.
The merger is now old news, the media has moved on. They will now remain quiet until the outcome is determined.retailfanmitchell019 wrote: ↑October 31st, 2023, 12:02 am In the past few weeks, there has been a deafening silence in terms of merger news, apart from this op-ed: https://progressivegrocer.com/opinion-k ... pers-alike
I wonder if this deal is possibly over... I wouldn't be surprised.
I think at this point in time the majority shareholders of Albertsons are better off pulling out of the deal anyway. Kroger's refusal to invest in their stores is turning them into another Sears, while the performance at ACI keeps improving. There are probably better routes to getting Apollo and Cerberus their payday. They can't keep extending the deadline forever.CalItalian wrote: ↑November 2nd, 2023, 3:35 pm FTC head says decision on blocking Albertsons/Kroger deal won’t happen this year
https://boisedev.com/news/2023/11/02/li ... lbertsons/
They will sue to block. Multiple states will as well.
For the last nearly a year, I've worked in government between D.C. & CA. Heard it all. Timing for an election year is strategic. This is highly political. I said that a year ago when I last posted.
Side note, nobody on either side of the political aisle likes Rodney McMullen - not even those that failed Kroger in lobbying for this merger or a certain Ohio U.S. Senator that took a contribution to say nice things.
If you want a market with absolutely zero Kroger/Albertsons presence, Minneapolis/St. Paul is the answer (where the grocery market has been a tough place for national chains to enter), along with San Antonio (HEB’s hometown), Kansas City (another tough place for national chains), Cleveland and Pittsburgh (Giant Eagle is the dominant traditional chain, but Cleveland has a Meijer presence), Oklahoma (a state lacking in strong traditional grocers, as Walmart has a monopoly there), and Western Michigan (Meijer’s home turf).storewanderer wrote: ↑November 2nd, 2023, 9:53 pm There are so many other options... in most markets...
It isn't bad having these two chains around. The more options the better when it comes to grocery stores. More competition, better ads, more options for customers as mix varies between every chain, but my main thought there is if these two chains were to just vanish there are still a lot of other options.retailfanmitchell019 wrote: ↑November 3rd, 2023, 12:06 amIf you want a market with absolutely zero Kroger/Albertsons presence, Minneapolis/St. Paul is the answer (where the grocery market has been a tough place for national chains to enter), along with San Antonio (HEB’s hometown), Kansas City (another tough place for national chains), Cleveland and Pittsburgh (Giant Eagle is the dominant traditional chain, but Cleveland has a Meijer presence), Oklahoma (a state lacking in strong traditional grocers, as Walmart has a monopoly there), and Western Michigan (Meijer’s home turf).storewanderer wrote: ↑November 2nd, 2023, 9:53 pm There are so many other options... in most markets...
Or, just move to Canada, where Kroger and Albertsons will never have a presence in. But that’s easier said than done…
What other routes are you thinking? The only other alternatives I can think of are a sale to some other private equity group or a foreign grocer. Neither one seems realistic right now. If this deal falls through and Cerberus doesn't want to wait, the next best option might be to sell individual divisions, but that will significantly reduce the company's value.ClownLoach wrote: ↑November 2nd, 2023, 6:15 pm I think at this point in time the majority shareholders of Albertsons are better off pulling out of the deal anyway. Kroger's refusal to invest in their stores is turning them into another Sears, while the performance at ACI keeps improving. There are probably better routes to getting Apollo and Cerberus their payday. They can't keep extending the deadline forever.