FILE – Mitch Maddox, a bread route salesman, loads bread Tuesday, May 30, 2006, outside the Eagle Rock Albertsons store in Los Angeles. That hiring spree is nearly five times the 0.8% yearly pace since 1990. The sector, which includes supermarkets, beverage stores and small grocery shops, saw a gain of 7,600 jobs in 12 months, or 4.9% growth. My trusty spreadsheet, filled with state job figures, found that jobs at grocery stores were at 105% of pre-pandemic employment in August 2019. Would such a giant chain cut consumers’ food shopping options?Īnd what of the employees? The companies have said they’ll sell as many as 375 stores through a spinoff.Ĭonsider that a merger of this magnitude could reshape the food-and-beverage-store industry in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, which employed 163,600 people as of August. The deal to pair up several of Kroger’s local chains (Ralphs and Food4Less) with Albertsons’ name-sake stores plus Vons and Pavillions will draw intense regulatory scrutiny. We need another grocery store for sure.Southern California’s supermarket sector got a big jolt Friday when Kroger announced a proposed merger with Albertsons, putting a spotlight on a slice of local retailing that’s fared well in the pandemic era. "They all come here because there aren't any other options. "Build another grocery store," Blair said, referencing how some residents in Windsor, Severance, Timnath, Loveland and Fort Collins all share the same two stores. In Windsor, where residents have been pushing for years for both local government and companies to build a third grocery store along the town's rapidly growing southern border, the news of possible consolidation of the only two grocery stores comes with a plea for more options, not less. They will be the same and that has consequences for the consumer," Clouse said. "(If they keep their names) it won't be different. Clouse warned that the proposed merger could result in Kroger closing stores in order to consolidate properties and more, meaning some could also lose their sources of income. However, Clouse said maintaining original store names would likely be nothing more than a facade for the consumer. If the sale is finalized and approved there is a possibility that Safeway or King Soopers stores could remain under their original names. "You are going to see higher prices, and you may also see fewer goods." "Now there is no competition between those two and there is no reason for them to have to compete on a price basis for the consumer's dollars," Clouse said. But, I don't like the idea of a monopoly either," said Joline Blair, a shopper in Windsor. I love King Soopers, I think they are a good company. And, with the two likely headed toward a merger, both experts and residents fear this will mean more cost for the consumers. However, towns like Windsor in northern Colorado are stuck with only two options, Safeway and King Soopers. Many larger cities have added the likes of Trader Joe's, Whole Foods and more in recent decades. In many towns and cities in Colorado, Safeway and King Soopers are the only two options for groceries away from non-traditional grocers like Walmart, Target, Sam's Club and Costco. "That is not good news for the consumer," said Mac Clouse, Professor of Finance at the University of Denver. The sale means Safeway, owned by Albertsons, will now be under the same management as City Market and King Soopers which are owned by Kroger.Īccording to business experts, the merger will likely mean a spike in prices for consumer goods at grocery stores around the state. In Colorado two of the most visited grocers in the state could soon be under the same ownership after Kroger announced they will purchase Albertson Co. Kroger, Albertsons merger would leave some Colorado towns with only 1 grocer 02:47
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |