Grocery Quotes

The Mister spoke with a reporter the other day about the grocery business; specifically about the Albertson's closing as it relates to the closing of the Henry's Markets. His quotes made it into the AZ Republic article, I see:

When two Henry's Farmers Market grocery stores close Dec. 16 they will be the fourth and fifth groceries in Gilbert to be shuttered this year.

The challenge will be to fill them.

Albertsons LLC has received offers for all three of its vacant store sites in Gilbert, Christine Wilcox, a company spokeswoman, said.

Wilcox would not identify who had made the offers, but said the company has received offers for all of the stores it vacated around the country this year and, in some cases, multiple offers have come in on some sites.

In June, Albertsons Inc. was divided and sold to three buyers. SuperValu Inc., Albertsons LLC, an Idaho-based company owned by Cerberus Capital Management, purchased about 661 of the stories, including all of those in the Southwest. It then closed the Gilbert stores at Power and Baseline roads, Cooper and Ray roads, and Higley and Elliot roads.

The company owns the properties at the first two locations, and leases the land at Higley and Elliot in the Lakeview at Morrison Ranch shopping center, Wilcox said.

This month, Henry's Farmers Market, a competitor in the natural and organic grocery market with Sprouts and Sunflower, will close both of its Gilbert stores, one at The Shoppes at Gilbert Commons at Cooper and Baseline roads, and the other in Mirador Square, a shopping center at Lindsay and Warner roads.

"We're currently oversaturated in the number of brands or chains of grocers. We're not oversaturated in grocery stores," said Scott Morrison, a partner in the Morrison Ranch shopping center.

Albertsons continues to sell groceries at three Gilbert locations. Other grocers in town are Fry's, Safeway, Bashas' , SuperTarget stores, Wal-Mart, Sprouts Farmers Market and Sunflower Market.

Morrison predicted another grocery store will move in to the vacant spot on his property.

"If you look at the specific corner and what is and is not around it, I have absolutely no doubt that what goes in there will be a grocer," he said. "Everybody is anxious for there to be a grocer in there."

Yes, I was really wishing I could run over there and pick up those last forgotten items for our Thanksgiving feast last week. You can read the rest of the article at your leisure to see how the merchants in that center are working to raise awareness of their stores.

As far as the article goes, there is nothing new in it to the visitors of my front porch; I've mentioned that we've heard through the grapevine that two grocers have made offers on the building at Lakeview; still no word from the official channels, of course. But I would think that they would be ready to accept offers and get the store up and running; they are not in the business of holding on to buildings, after all. We are all aware that things take longer than we wish they would in this business. Still, I anticipate running to the grocery store at Lakeview for whipping cream long before next Thanksgiving.