In a May conference call with analysts, Supervalu President and CEO Sam Duncan said the company’s goal is to open up to 100 new Save-A-Lot locations this year, including about 60 corporate stores. Beginning in 2018, Duncan projects 150 Save-A-Lot openings per year and anticipates the same 60-40 corporate – licensee mix.
“Supervalu wants to be in control of the Save-A-Lot store openings,” according to Chuck Cerankosky, an analyst at Northcoast Research in Cleveland. “They are making sure the customer walks into a well-stocked, clean store that features a more appealing fresh-product assortment than it might have two or three years ago.”
Save-A-Lot stores are typically about 16,000 SF, or about one third the size (or even less) of a traditional supermarket.