NEWS ROUNDUP 1994-02-21 (2)

Target Sets Supercenter Test

division of Dayton Hudson here, will test a supercenter format with a discount department store and full-line grocery operation.

"Supercenters are still in the developmental stage, but we have plans for a small-scale test of a supercenter," Carolyn Brookter, a Target spokeswoman, told SN. She declined to explain what the company means by "a small-scale test."

Two of Target's primary competitors -- Wal-Mart Stores, Bentonville, Ark., and Kmart Corp., Troy, Mich. -- are committed to the supercenter concept and have opened several units.

According to trade reports, Target may be contemplating testing the supercenter concept somewhere in the Midwest, possibly in Lawrence, Kan.; Springfield, Mo.; Champaign, Ill.; Omaha, Neb., or here.

Trade sources said Target's supercenters -- which may operate under the name Super T -- will cover approximately 150,000 square feet. Target could also expand some of its larger Target Greatland stores to the Super T concept.

P&C Plans 2 Upstate N.Y. Units

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- P&C Food Markets here plans to open two 70,000-square-foot stores this fall in upstate New York as part of a major store development effort to expand its market share in Onondaga County. The stores will be located in Camillus and Clay.

P&C, a division of Penn Traffic here, also plans to expand three existing stores to the 65,000- to 70,000-square-foot range within the next 12 to 18 months, the company said.

In addition, it expects to disclose three new store sites in the area later this year, said John Dixon, president and chief executive officer.

The new and expanded stores are larger than the 32,000- to 50,000-square-foot stores P&C has been opening. They will feature some elements of Penn Traffic's Big Bear Plus stores in Ohio, including expanded product lines in soft goods, pharmacy and health and beauty care.

D&W Buys 2 Huizenga Stores

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- D&W Food Centers here has acquired two stores from Huizenga Markets in Holland and Zealand, Mich. The acquisition moves D&W into an area along Lake Michigan about 30 miles southwest of its primary market.

D&W operates 24 stores, with a 25th unit set to open in mid-March. The company is seeking additional acquisitions in western Michigan, Jeff Gietzen, president and chief operating officer, told SN.

The two acquired stores reopened under the D&W banner in late January. Both stores underwent some remerchandising, including the addition of beer, wine and liquor sections, floral departments and greeting cards.

Gietzen said he expects volume at the Holland store to increase 10% to 15% a year through the addition of new departments. D&W is more likely to maintain than increase sales at the Zealand store, which is located in a more defined market area, he said.

At the Holland store, D&W added both service and self-service seafood and service meat. D&W added service seafood and expanded produce space by 10% to 15% at the Zealand store, which already had service meat.

Ahold Unit to Grow in Philadelphia CARLISLE, Pa. -- Giant Food Stores here, a unit of the Dutch-American retailer Ahold, is expanding its presence in the suburban Philadelphia market.

Giant has signed leases for stores near Valley Forge and Norristown and in Montgomery County, Pa. The three new 53,800-square-foot units are set to open as early as spring.

Giant, which already has about seven stores in the greater Philadelphia region, operates about 60 stores, primarily in central Pennsylvania, with annual sales of about $1 billion.

The Philadelphia market is dominated by Acme Markets, Malvern, Pa.; Pathmark Stores, Woodbridge, N.J.; A&P's Super Fresh division, and Genuardi Super Markets, Norristown, Pa.