Chedraui USA to open 5 new supermarkets, massive distribution center

Chedraui USA, parent company of grocers El Super, Smart & Final and Fiesta Mart, announced plans to open five new stores, remodel 40 more and develop a 1.4 million-square-foot distribution center this year. 

The Los Angeles-based company aims to open two El Super stores, in Las Vegas, Nevada, and San Ysidro, California, and three Smart & Final stores, in the California cities of Madera, Lompoc and Lancaster.  

Chedraui USA operates 376 locations in California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, and claims the status of fourth-largest grocer in California. The company did not specify in its press release which of its roughly 40 stores would be remodeled.  

“Our El Super and Smart & Final stores offer customers among the best variety and value in our markets, and we’ve had many requests to bring additional stores to new communities,” said Carlos Smith, CEO of Chedraui USA, in a statement. “We’re excited to respond with five new stores in 2023, and the commitment to a new integrated distribution center to help us grow and maintain low prices for our customers, for years to come.”  

That new distribution center will be located in Rancho Cucamonga, California, and will "increase its current Southern California distribution and warehouse capacity by 50%,” according to Chedraui USA.  

The larger distribution facility will enable Chedraui USA to integrate the operations of five smaller distribution centers throughout Southern California, the company said. The opening of the larger distribution facility will create new distribution jobs “while dramatically reducing the amount of fuel consumed on Southern California roads through significant route integration,” the company noted.  

The announcement comes just months after Smart & Final made headlines when more than 300 of its warehouse employees in Commerce, California, joined the Teamsters Local 630 union in Los Angeles. “Workers at the Smart & Final distribution center made history by overwhelmingly voting to join Teamsters Local 630,” Lou Villalvazo, secretary-treasurer for Teamster Local 630, said in February. “Workers voted to join Local 630 because they see the strong representation, better wages, benefits and strong protections that come with a Teamster contract."     

A union representative could not immediately be reached for comment about Chedraui’s expansion plans.