(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — The merger between two grocery giants means dozens of local Mariano’s and Jewel-Osco locations will be sold to a new buyer, but the question of whether the stores will get a new name remains up in the air.
Kroger and Albertsons announced that, under their planned $24.6 billion merger, the companies will sell 31 Mariano's stores and 4 Jewel stores in the Chicago area to C&S Wholesale Grocers.
The Chicago-area sales are part of a larger selloff that includes hundreds of stores across the country — all going to C&S Wholesale Grocers — to win the blessing of federal regulators.
Burt Flickinger, managing director at the retail consulting firm Strategic Resource Group in New York, discussed the plan on the WBBM Noon Business Hour on Wednesday.
“C&S is a very well capitalized buyer,” he said. “We’ve worked with them in the southeast to turn around companies; we’ve worked with them in California to turn around companies.”
C&S will also get the Mariano's name as part of the agreement, but Flickinger said it’s still unclear whether the impacted stores will retain the Mariano’s name after the merger goes through.
“It’s very possible that the Mariano’s name stays,” he said. “It still needs to be worked out with the Federal Trade Commission.”
Flickinger said local grocery store chains like Kroger and Albertsons are merging in order to better face competition from Walmart, Target, Trader Joes, Amazon and shopping clubs.
He said Costco, for example, does especially well in Naperville, where the wholesaler has two locations.
“Both of which, in meat alone, do $500,000 – $1 million per week, per Costco,” Flickinger said.
See which Chicago-area Mariano’s and Jewel locations will be sold off with the map embedded in this story. Listen to Flickinger’s full interview below.
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