Your nearest Ralphs or Albertsons may soon have a new owner.
To gain regulatory approval for their $25 billion merger, Kroger and Albertsons are planning to sell off some of their stores to C&S Wholesale Grocers, a New Hampshire-based supermarket supplier. Japanese investment company SoftBank is backing the deal.
Listen and subscribe to The L.A. Local podcast: your TL;DR for what's happening in Southern California
Kroger’s proposed acquisition of Albertsons would give the grocery giant control of nearly 5,000 stores across the nation – nearly a quarter of the U.S. food retail market.
The deal has drawn opposition from several unions representing grocery workers, who say it will hurt competition and push down wages. Officials from seven states sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission last month urging the agency to stop the merger.
According to Bloomberg, Kroger and Albertsons plan to unload hundreds of stores to mollify antitrust regulators.The exact number of stores involved hasn’t been disclosed.
Retail analyst Burt Flickinger told KNX News the sale will bring new competition to California’s grocery industry.
“These stores are in California, where C&S has very few retail food stores,” he said. “So that’s positive for C&S, adds a new competitor to the market.”
C&S currently operates a small number of grocery stores nationwide, including 11 Grand Union stores in the Northeast and an unspecified number of Piggly Wiggly supermarkets.
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok