Kroger’s Food 4 Less Gets More Stores in Vegas
Kroger has announced an agreement to purchase 18 Raley’s in Las Vegas. The deal is expected to be finalized within 30 days and the former Raley’s will be converted to either Food 4 Less or Smith’s stores.
David Hirz, president, Food 4 Less is bullish on the chain’s prospects in the Las Vegas market. “We are excited about the potential of all of the stores we are acquiring and we look forward to defining the future of supermarket shopping in Las Vegas by providing state-of-the-art and value-added services for busy, value conscious shoppers.”
Food 4 Less bills itself as the nation’s largest price-impact supermarket. It operates a hybrid supermarket/club store format. Food 4 Less entered the Las Vegas market in 2000 after purchasing five former Price Rite stores. The division of Kroger, with headquarters in Los Angeles, operates 114 Food 4 Less stores in Southern California and Southern Nevada. It has plans to expand to the Midwest, opening stores in Illinois and Indiana.
Moderator’s Comment: What store banners and/or marketing
areas (KMAs) are most important to Kroger’s growth?
We remember being surprised when we first heard about
Kroger rolling out its Food 4 Less concept in the Midwest. Typically, the chain
looks to capture share with a retail brand readily identifiable in the market
(Smith’s, King Soopers, etc.). We’re going to keep a close eye on Food 4 Less’
progress. [George
Anderson – Moderator]