FOOD GIANT LOOKS TO EXTEND SOUTHERN REACH

RUSSELL REDMAN

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Food Giant Supermarkets here has upped its total store count to 100 and is eyeing other areas for future expansion.

The retailer plans to open up to 10 stores this year, Kenneth Storey, owner and president, told SN. "We've gradually added stores, and we recently acquired two more stores that put us up to the 100 mark," he said.

The company acquired two independent supermarkets -- in Chiefland and Cross City, Fla., just west of Gainesville -- in early summer and a store in Eudora, Ark., before those deals, which became Piggly Wiggly units. Terms were not disclosed.

"We'll probably open about five more stores this year, and we've probably opened five or six so far this year. So we'll open about eight to 10 stores this year," Storey said. "Almost everything we're opening now is under the Piggly Wiggly name."

Food Giant operates supermarkets plus several warehouse and limited assortment stores in Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Florida under the banners Piggly Wiggly, Big Star, County Market, Sureway, Stan's, Dixie Dandy, Sunshine, Save Mart, United Super, Food Giant and Marketplace. Roughly two-thirds of the company's stores are Piggly Wiggly supermarkets.

"We have about 10 stores in Florida now, and we are interested in moving into Florida a little bit more. We're in the northern part of Florida -- the Panhandle area -- and we're hoping to add some more stores in that area," Storey said. "We're in eight states now, and we're looking at different opportunities in all of those states -- really, anywhere in the mid-South."

Food Giant's average supermarket size is around 20,000 square feet, but stores range from 10,000 to 55,000 square feet, according to Storey. The recently acquired stores are about 20,000 square feet each and will undergo renovations, he said.

"Anytime we buy a store, we usually do a major remodel. And we have a lot of remodels on the board that we're working on right now probably about 10 remodels," he explained. "Most of them will be expansions."

Store enlargements fall in line with Food Giant's current strategy of boosting its perishables offerings and enhancing its customer service, Storey noted. "We're certainly expanding in that area, adding more and larger departments all the time in the fresh food area," he said.