Winn-Dixie Expands Prototype

ELLIOT ZWIEBACH

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — With the opening last week of its second prototype store — in Margate, Fla. — Winn-Dixie Stores here believes it has found a successful formula for store design and layout as it picks up the pace of new-store development.

The company is basing its positive outlook on the performance of the first prototype it opened in Covington, La., in early February. “We had very high expectations for that store, and it's doing better than we expected,” Peter Lynch, chairman, president and chief executive officer, told SN during the opening of the Margate store.

“What we did in that store has been highly successful, and we believe it will work for us here in South Florida and beyond.”

The chain plans to start construction during the next 12 months on five new stores — four in Florida and one in Louisiana, Lynch said — compared with two in the fiscal year that concludes June 30. It also plans 60 more remodelings — the same number as this year — at a cost of about $2 million per store, Lynch added.

He declined to pinpoint the locations of the new stores for competitive reasons, but acknowledged they will cover a variety of demographic areas. The Margate store is in an area with a combination of Latino and Jewish consumers as well as upscale shoppers, Lynch said.

All new stores will be 53,000 square feet, “which is the ideal size for what we want to do,” he said. The Covington store is that size, but the Margate store — in South Florida, west of Fort Lauderdale — is a former Publix that was 56,000 square feet.

All new stores and all remodels going forward will have the same package as the Margate store: extensive perishables, including expanded produce; service meat and seafood; wood-burning rotisseries for prime rib, chicken and smoked turkey; an olive and bruschetta bar in an expanded deli; a broader selection of Hispanic and kosher foods; a bulk candy section; and a specialty gift section.

The Margate store that opened last Wednesday has a larger prepared-food section, with a broader variety of hot foods, and also a larger service seafood section than the Covington store, Lynch said

Another difference is that the Covington store has a farmers' market located outside the entrance, “which has been a big hit there,” Lynch said, “but we didn't have space for that at the newest store.”

Winn-Dixie also fine-tuned “a couple of things” in putting the Margate store together, he noted, as the chain will continue to do as it opens more new stores.

Since emerging from bankruptcy protection in 2006, Winn-Dixie has opened the two new stores and remodeled 230 out of its 515 total.