Good Bye Albertsons

[Boisefan]

Albertsons announced the sale of the company, with debt included at about 17.4 billion dollars in cash to SuperValu based in Minnisota. Atleast the article states some jobs would remain in Boise, this is a huge loss and i hope this doesn't become another Ore-Ida(shipped back east with Hienz...)

Idahostatesman

[Mith242]

I have to say I was a bit surprised by this. Granted there are no Albertsons where I live. But all the ones I've seen where some of my family members live seemed to be a very nicely run business. I think I heard that Wal-mart had been cutting into their business. Most of the stores I saw made me thing that Albertsons was a bit more upscale and wouldn't be affect by someone like Wal-mart but maybe I'm wrong on this. Anyone know much about SuperValu? I can't say I've heard of them before.

[dpbaker]

In my local area, Albertson's has little competition fom other major chains. There are a few Safeways and a Nob Hill or two. My local Albertson's is a run-down, poorly operated dump, and that is being kind. The staff are its only redeeming value as they are always friendly, but under obvious pressure because of understaffing. There are others in the area though that are quite nice. What is walloping my local one is a small store across the street, a chain of I believe 4 stores, called Cosentino's (family-run). Typically higher priced on the average, not horribly, but they offer a vastly superior selection of vegetables and meats and an awesome deli, and more gourmet brands and people flock to it, makes Albertson's look like a ghost town. I believe Whole Foods is also pulling away business from Albertson's in this area. Again, more specialty, gourmet, and natural foods. I dunno, maybe that's the trend here now.

[Boisefan]

I have heard mixed things about the Albertson's chain, the stores out here are very Very nice, and the quality is worth the little bit more you spend, and the staff is very freindly, but of course i live in the base market

[PghUSA]

Albertson's was a great company, I was surprised how huge they always were throughout Florida, Texas and the mountain and pacific west. It is sad that such a great company couldn't survive. About the Ore-Ida thing Pittsburgh thanks you guys for that Heinz aquisition, but you should contact Heinz they have recently spun off some divisions (soups, petfood, babyfood) to Del Monte and is mulling spinning off others. Ore-Ida might indeed come back to Idaho if that is the case as an independent company.

[Boisefan]

it was a large company, but it had ran in to some trouble(left middle tenn. market in i think 2001 or 2002.) lately and so that is the reason for the sale.

[Mith242]

it was a large company, but it had ran in to some trouble(left middle tenn. market in i think 2001 or 2002.) lately and so that is the reason for the sale.

They also pulled out of the Oklahoma/Arkansas region as well around that time. Not that they ever had much in Arkansas.

[PghUSA]

Still I don't understand how even more minor players like the Applachian Giant Eagle chain can survive yet Alby's floundered with the highly lucrative west and sunbelt states in their portfolio. The intense competition in Florida and Texas and the labor union problems in California probably started bleeding them dry.