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Will Ingles always remain king in the mountains?


jr7777

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It seems like Ingles will always stay on top. With Bi-lo and Food Lion shutting down some of their stores, it only re-inforces that idea. Grocery Outlet and Earth Fare have been adding stores lately, but do you think they will be solid competition against Ingles? Personally, I'd like to see Publix add some stores in Asheville.

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Honestly, Food Lion is a bottom feeder store. If they can't make it there, then I don't that any big chain could make it in the mountians. The problem with moving into the Asheville area is that its population is not big enough to make it worthwhile for a chain. Especially when home grown Ingles has a pretty good lock on the market.

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Yeah, you have a really good point. I've heard stories about Bob Ingles telling Piggly Wiggly not to come to Asheville or he would destroy them...I wouldn't be suprised if it was true. I'm wondering how Earth Fare will do in its new location, where Food Lion used to be.

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Which Food Lion and Bi-Lo stores are shutting down in Asheville? I know one of the Food Lions shut down on H'ville Rd and became an Earth Fare as you mentioned.

To put it into perspective: Asheville (city limits) has 1 Wal-mart Supercenter; 1- Harris Teeter; 2- Food Lions; 3- Bi-Lo stores, yet around 12 Ingles!

Ingle's is to Asheville as what Harris Teeter is to [south] Charlotte.

So as long as Ingle's doesn't get bought out by Kroger or anyone, I think they will remain king in the NC Mountains.

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Which Food Lion and Bi-Lo stores are shutting down in Asheville? I know one of the Food Lions shut down on H'ville Rd and became an Earth Fare as you mentioned.

Ah, I should've worded what I said better. I meant the stores they closed a while back. The Bi-Lo they closed in Arden, and the Food Lion they just closed on Hendo Rd. Sorry for the confusion.

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I do not see Ingle's giving up its dominance in the near future. They and Bi-Lo are the one-two punch in dominating western North Carolina and upstate South Carolina. With Food Lion pushing its Bloom stores in upstate South Carolina, I would not doubt they would springboard into Asheville to duel with Earth Fare.

I heard Ingle's plans to open additional stores around Greenville over a few years. I'm unaware which sites they have interest in. Eastern and southern Greenville County is rumored to be their intended growth area.

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I went to an Ingles about five years ago when I stayed with a friend who lived in Fletcher. It appeared to be a new store and I was rather impressed, it was one of the first stores I had seen with self checkouts...of course now they are everywhere but back then they were a novelty.

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A family company like this is always ripe for speculative takeovers when the founders retire. Never say never, in terms of dominance.

Ingles has rolled back some stores though, and retreated to their core areas. They seem "boxed in" by their competitors.

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A few years ago the Boone market seemed dominated by Charlotte chains but now it seems it has switched to Asheville chains since HT has done some closing and Ingles and Earth Fare have both moved in.

Even though Asheville based chains have moved into the Boone market, they still have a LONG ways to go in capturing top market share. Pretty much Lowes Foods and Harris Teeter rules that with Food Lion not far behind. Both the Ingles and Earth Fare locations are in poor access areas plagued by problem traffic and one with limited parking. Earth Fare pretty much caters to the college students and organic crowd and Ingles will get some of the west Boone/Foscoe trade. The location Ingles got from W-D was only pulling a bout 200K avg per week before the sale.

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Well, here in the east central and northeast Tennessee, extreme southwest Virginia and extreme southeast Kentucky, the big supermarket chain is Food City- which I happen to work for as a sales manager/trainer. I think we now have over 100 stores in the region. As of now, we are not anywhere in NC, but our closest store is in Galax, VA, which is only a few miles north of the VA-NC state line, so I am sure they get many NC residents shopping there. It has been rumored that they may eventually expand, but who knows. Other than Wal-Marts here- there are a FEW other supermarkets.... we have a few Ingles, Food Lions and Krogers and I think a couple of Whites Fresh Foods, but not near as many of those as Food City's. In fact, one of our TWO Food Lions have went out of business after many years of operation. If I am not mistaken, Food City has bought out the "Bi-Lo" markets in our region? Oh, we also have a few "Sav-a-Lot" (Save-a-lot)? stores as well.

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Well, here in the east central and northeast Tennessee, extreme southwest Virginia and extreme southeast Kentucky, the big supermarket chain is Food City- which I happen to work for as a sales manager/trainer. I think we now have over 100 stores in the region. As of now, we are not anywhere in NC, but our closest store is in Galax, VA, which is only a few miles north of the VA-NC state line, so I am sure they get many NC residents shopping there. It has been rumored that they may eventually expand, but who knows. Other than Wal-Marts here- there are a FEW other supermarkets.... we have a few Ingles, Food Lions and Krogers and I think a couple of Whites Fresh Foods, but not near as many of those as Food City's. In fact, one of our TWO Food Lions have went out of business after many years of operation. If I am not mistaken, Food City has bought out the "Bi-Lo" markets in our region? Oh, we also have a few "Sav-a-Lot" (Save-a-lot)? stores as well.
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I know it. Yeah, one of our local stores is next door to Super Wal-Mart. In fact, most of them are next to Wal-Marts.

I think Ingles is a grand store. I have been in the local ones here are they are so well-kept, clean, etc. I do not get to shop there often, because we do not have one in Bristol. In our metro area, the only ones that I am aware of is one in Jonesborough (southwest of Johnson City), Elizabethton, Colonial Heights and maybe another. I think there was one in JC, but it went out. I do not know of any in the three Tri-Cities now. The ones I mentioned are in the suburbs of the Tri-Cities. Kingsport may have one, but I am not sure.

Food City doesn't compete hardly at all with Ingles in any market, and is indeed a force to be reckoned with in East TN, SW VA, and SE KY. They even open stores across the street from Super Wal-Mart Centers while others run away. But as far as the Asheville area, Ingles is the kings of this region for the moment.
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Maybe Harris Teeter of Lowes will expand into WNC. Harris Teeter has one store in AVL and one in Hendersonville. Perhaps they will expand. Lowes has been expanding in recent years, maybe they will push further west. I love Ingles (thanks for the Lake Lure store!) but competition is a good thing!!!

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Maybe Harris Teeter of Lowes will expand into WNC. Harris Teeter has one store in AVL and one in Hendersonville. Perhaps they will expand. Lowes has been expanding in recent years, maybe they will push further west. I love Ingles (thanks for the Lake Lure store!) but competition is a good thing!!!
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