Is Your Supermarket up for Sale?

More than 500 stores nationwide to be sold as part of a grocery chain megamerger

Donna Fuscaldo,

AARP

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Published July 23, 2024

AARP (Source: Getty Images; Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

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Alaska • Arizona • California • Colorado • Delaware • Idaho • Illinois • Louisiana • Maryland • Montana • Nevada • New Mexico • Oregon • Texas • Utah • Virginia • Washington • Washington, D.C. • Wyoming

Big changes may be coming soon to your neighborhood grocer.

As part of the proposed $24.6 billion merger between Albertsons and Kroger, the supermarket giants have agreed to sell 579 stores in 18 states and Washington, D.C. to C&S Wholesale Grocers, a national wholesale grocery supply company and operator of Piggly Wiggly. Combined, Albertsons and Kroger currently own dozens of store brands including their namesake chains, Carrs, Harris Teeter, Safeway and Vons.

Under the proposed deal C&S would:

Take ownership of the 579 stores
Take ownership of the Carrs, Haggen, Mariano’s and QFC store brands
Take ownership of the Debi Lilly Design, Primo Taglio, Open Nature, ReadyMeals and Waterfront Bistro private-label product brands
License the Albertsons store brand name in California and Wyoming
License the Safeway store brand name in Arizona and Colorado

By selling the stores and brands, Albertsons and Kroger hope to allay the concerns of regulators to gain final approval for the merger, which was originally proposed in 2022. A decision may come later this year.

What do the changes mean for shoppers

The companies have promised that all 579 stores changing ownership will remain open and frontline staff will be retained. That means you should still see familiar faces stocking shelves and ringing up your purchases. You also won’t need to drive farther away to find a new supermarket. Locations with pharmacies and fueling stations will continue to offer those services, so your prescriptions and discounted gas will remain available.

What could change? Some stores may be rebranded as C&S assumes ownership of the Carrs, Haggen, Mariano’s and QFC store brands. Not only could C&S rebrand the stores it’s buying, it may choose to rebrand stores it already owns. And in the four states where C&S is licensing the Albertsons and Safeway names, Albertsons (owner of the Albertsons and Safeway chains) may choose to rebrand its remaining stores to avoid ownership confusion.

What’s more, there’s no guarantee that grocery prices and selection will stay the same. If your store is affected by a change in ownership, keep an eye on pricing and whether your favorite products remain on the shelves. You should also check to ensure the supermarket will continue to offer a senior discount, if it does already. And if it doesn’t, ask the store manager if the new owner will start offering one.

To see if your local supermarket is up for sale as part of the Albertsons-Kroger merger, check out our state-by-state list below.

Alaska

Carrs — 1340 Gambell St., Anchorage
Carrs — 1650 W. Northern Lights Blvd., Anchorage
Carrs — 5600 Debarr Road, Anchorage
Carrs — 4000 W. Dimond Blvd., Anchorage
Carrs — 1501 Huffman Road, Anchorage
Carrs — 7731 E. Northern Lights Blvd., Anchorage
Carrs — 1725 Abbott Road, Anchorage
Carrs — 2920 Seward Highway, Anchorage
Carrs — 11409 Business Park Blvd., Eagle River
Safeway — 3627 Airport Way, Fairbanks
Safeway — 30 College Road, Fairbanks
Eagle — 147 Hightower Road, Girdwood
Safeway — 3033 Vintage Blvd., Juneau
Safeway — 10576 Kenai Spur Highway, Suite A, Kenai
Safeway — 301 N. Santa Claus Lane, North Pole
Carrs — 664 E. Palmer-Wasilla Highway, Palmer
Safeway — 44428 Sterling Highway S., Soldotna
Carrs — 595 E. Parks Highway, Wasilla

Is Your Supermarket up for Sale?

More than 500 stores nationwide to be sold as part of a grocery chain megamerger

Jump to your state's list

What do the changes mean for shoppers

Alaska

Arizona

California

Colorado

​​Delaware​

Idaho

​​Illinois​

Louisiana

Maryland

Montana

Nevada

New Mexico

Oregon

Texas

Utah

Virginia

Washington

Washington, D.C.

Wyoming

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Delaware

Illinois