Auchan to Close U.S. Stores
retailer Auchan said last week it will close its only two hypermarkets in the United States, both here, within the next three months. The company said increased competition over the past two years has reduced the growth potential for the two stores, which it said are losing money. Auchan opened its first U.S. hypermarket here in 1988, its second in Chicago the following year (and sold it in 1991), and its third here in 2000. When the first one opened, it was so popular that there were reportedly 55-minute waits at the checkout lines. Auchan, which had $23.4 billion in sales in 2001, operates 1,674 hypermarkets and supermarkets in Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa.
Morrison Makes Offer for Safeway PLC: Report
LONDON -- William Morrison Supermarkets here reportedly said last week that it would pay 2.9 billion pounds (U.S. $4.6 billion) for Safeway plc, also here. The combined business would have 598 stores and a 16.1% market share, according to reports. Safeway shareholders still must approve the merger, the reports said.
Loblaw's Stops Accepting Checks in Ontario
TORONTO -- Canadian supermarket operator Loblaw's here last week said it would stop accepting personal checks as a method of payment at its 72 flagship stores in Ontario at the end of this month. Checks have lost popularity among consumers because of the emergence of debit cards, and checks now account for less than 2% of transactions at the chain, according to reports. Loblaw's will continue to accept personal checks at its Quebec stores and at its No Frills and Fortinos chains.
Nash Finch Acquires Five Stores in South Dakota
MINNEAPOLIS -- Nash Finch Co. here last week said it has purchased five Sunshine Food Markets, Sioux Falls, S.D., for an undisclosed price. The company said it plans to convert three of the stores to the Econofoods banner -- two in Sioux Falls and one in Yankton, S.D. The other two stores, both in Sioux Falls, will be evaluated according to their role in Nash Finch's future growth plans, the company said.
Spartan Sells Seven Shopping Centers
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Spartan Stores here said last week it has completed the sale of seven Michigan shopping centers for $46 million in cash. The centers, located here and in suburban Detroit, are anchored by supermarkets operated by D&W Food Centers here and VG's Food Centers, Fenton, Mich., which are supplied by Spartan. Commented James Meyer, Spartan's chairman, president and chief executive officer, "The property sale corresponds with our previous and continuing efforts to channel resources from non-core functions to our key grocery and convenience store operations."
Balducci's Looking for Larger Space
BETHESDA, Md. -- Sutton Place Gourmet here said last week that it has closed the flagship location of Balducci's, the pioneering specialty food store in New York's Greenwich Village, while it continues to look for a new, larger location for the unit. Sutton Place, which acquired Balducci's in 1999 and opened a second, still-operating Balducci's unit in New York near Lincoln Center in 2000, said it has been searching for a 21,000-square-foot space in which to relocate the 4,900-square-foot Greenwich Village store, which had been operating at its flagship location since 1972. Clifford Smith, Sutton Place's chairman and chief executive officer, said he hadn't wanted to close the original store, "but we found ourselves in a no-win situation due to size, age of the facility and remodeling constraints."
