GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Spartan Stores intends to hang new banners on the Felpausch stores it recently acquired but said the changes will come only after the stores have been renovated — a process that is expected to take a year or more. “We will convert to the banner we feel is appropriate, and Family Fare and D&W will come into play,” Craig Sturken, chief executive officer of Spartan, said in a conference call Thursday. “But we don’t think it makes good sense to put a new banner on a store that hasn’t been fixed from a physical standpoint.” Sturken’s remarks came during a review of financial results for the fiscal first quarter ended June 23. Overall sales increased 5.4% to $556.7 million, with retail sales gaining by 8.8% to $274.3 million and distribution sales growing by 2.4% to $282.4 million. Comparable-store sales increased by 3.6%, excluding fuel. Quarterly earnings of $12.8 million improved by 87.4% from the same period a year ago, or 28% excluding one-time items.
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