EQUITY RETAIL BLOG

Good Cents discount grocer to debut in Pittsburgh

Discount grocery store “Good Cents Grocery + More” will open its first location this month in Pittsburgh. Owned and operated by Giant Eagle, the new banner will compete directly with Bottom Dollar. Giant Eagle already operates seven Valu King discount grocery stores, but said the new concept is “an evolution” of the Valu King format. […]

Wawa opens sixth Florida store

Wawa opened its sixth Florida store late last month. The company began opening stores in Florida in July, and has plans for 25 more in 2013, with a total of 100 new stores in five years. The six operating stores are in Orlando and Kissimmee. Expansion to the Tampa area will begin next year. Wawa […]

Wakefern reports gain in yearly retail sales

Wakefern Food Corp. announced that retail sales were up 6.4% to $13.6 billion for the company’s recently completed fiscal year. In addition, warehouse sales for the cooperative wholesaler and ShopRite parent company were $10.1 billion. For the year, 10 new ShopRite stores and one new Price Rite discount store opened.

Weis Markets 3Q results include higher earnings, lower sales

Weis Markets announced its third quarter earnings recently, which were highlighted by a 1.2% increase in net income to $17.2 million. In addition: Earnings per share increased 1.6% to $0.64 per share as compared to the same period one year ago. Operating income increased 1.3% to $26.5 million. Sales decreased 1.5% to $668.4 million. […]

Many supermarkets remain closed due to Hurricane Sandy

Many supermarkets remain closed due to Hurricane Sandy, including the following: ShopRite – 17 stores closed as of this morning, most of which are in New Jersey. Stop & Shop – 10 stores (five in NY and five in NJ) were closed as of yesterday. Whole Foods – four of the company’s seven New […]

Costco to ramp up openings, capital spending

During a conference call a couple weeks ago to discuss earnings, a Costco executive said the company plans to open 27-30 new stores next year, the most since 2007. Along with the openings, capital spending is expected to grow to nearly $2 billion, compared to $1.5 billion spent in the fiscal year that ended on […]

Potential buyer rumored for Supervalu as company posts earnings loss

It was widely reported yesterday that Cerberus Capital Management may make a bid for struggling grocery giant Supervalu, whose banners include Acme and Save-A-Lot in the Philadelphia market, and Albertson’s, Jewel-Osco and others around the country. Cerberus is a private equity firm established in 1992 that has made investments in distressed companies like Chrysler, and partnered […]

Walmart to invest billions in food pricing

Last week Walmart’s chief merchandising officer said the company plans to invest $6 billion in retail pricing by 2017, with the investment primarily in food and consumables. He also said they expect to have more than 500 Neighborhood Markets operating – with total sales of $10 billion – by fiscal 2016. According to Walmart’s website, […]

Genuardi's disposition causes Safeway sales decline

Safeway reported last week that the disposition of its Genuardi’s stores in PA and NJ contributed to a sales decline in the third quarter ended September 8. The company realized an after-tax gain of $49 million and cash proceeds of $111 million on the sale of 16 Genuardi’s units and the closure of an additional store […]

Analysts predict better year-end for supermarkets

Industry analysts said earlier this month that they expect the financial performance of supermarkets during the second half of the year to be slightly better than in the first half. Reasons cited include the following: A slowdown in inflation, which may result in better value propositions; Slow but ongoing acceleration in the general economy; […]