Dive Brief:
- Harps Food Stores is set to enter Tennessee and Kentucky with the acquisition of 18 stores from the owners of independent grocer Dyer Foods.
- The transaction, which Harps expects to finalize this summer, includes 17 locations in Western Tennessee and one location in Kentucky. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
- This deal is the latest step in Harps’ expansion strategy of acquiring independent grocery stores in states surrounding its home state of Arkansas.
Dive Insight:
Harps said Dyer Foods informed employees that its banners, employment and operations across western Tennessee will continue “with minimal change or disruption.”
The stores included in the transaction operate in small towns throughout Western Tennessee, fitting with Harps’ growth strategy focused on rural markets. The transaction also includes a store in Fulton, Kentucky.
“We are excited to be able to acquire these stores from the Hays Family,” Kim Eskew, chairman and CEO of Harps, said in a statement. “We love small stores in small towns and these stores fit our strategy perfectly. We have the greatest respect for what the Hays family and their staff have been able to accomplish and look forward to having this great group of people join our company.”
Harps’ footprint has expanded significantly over the past several years through transactions like this latest one, creating a significant regional grocery player.
Last year, the company acquired 10 stores in Oklahoma, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported, and, a few years before that, the company moved into Louisiana and Mississippi through a seven-store acquisition, according to local Arkansas TV station 5News. In early 2020, Harps picked up 20 locations in Northeast Arkansas and Missouri from Town and Country Grocers. Harps has also purchased single locations through the years, including stores it acquired last year in Fairfield Bay and Mena, Arkansas, according to The Shelby Report.
All told, Harps has nearly doubled its footprint over the past six years or so. Once this latest deal is complete, it will operate 178 stores across eight states.
