Dive Brief:
- SpartanNash plans to close four supermarkets during the coming weeks, a spokesperson for the Midwestern grocery company confirmed by email on Wednesday.
- The closures, which involve three Family Fare locations and a VG’s Grocery store, will result in more than 120 layoffs, according to notices the company filed with regulators.
- SpartanNash’s decision to close the stores follows its disclosure in November that the grocery sector grew significantly slower in the markets where it operates compared with the U.S. grocery market overall.
Dive Insight:
SpartanNash did not provide details about why it has elected to close the four stores, but the spokesperson noted in a statement that it was shuttering the locations in connection with “our continuous evaluation of our overall retail footprint and what is best for our nearly 200 company-operated stores, our Associates and the communities we serve.”
The stores will close “over the next few months,” the spokesperson said, without indicating where they are located.
Layoff notices the company filed with state regulators, however, indicate the closures include Family Fare stores in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, and Glenwood, Iowa, as well as a VG’s Grocery location in Caro, Michigan. Grocery Dive was unable to find a layoff notice for the third Family Fare location slated to close.
The closure of the Family Fare store in Chippewa Falls will result in the loss of 45 positions, while the Glenwood location shuttering will cost 23 employees their jobs. Fifty-four employees will lose their jobs in connection with the closure of the VG’s Grocery store.
Layoffs at the Family Fare in Glenwood will take effect Feb. 14, and the job cuts at the Chippewa Falls and Caro SpartanNash stores will begin March 16, according to the notices.
The company has invited impacted workers to apply for jobs at other locations it operates, according to the spokesperson.
SpartanNash is trimming its retail portfolio following its purchase last year of more than 55 retail locations in several transactions.
The company agreed to acquire Fresh Encounter, a chain of 49 grocery stores in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky, last October. The company also announced that month that it was buying Markham Enterprises, a chain of three convenience stores in Michigan. SpartanNash announced in April 2024 that it was acquiring Metcalfe’s Market, a three-store chain in Wisconsin.
SpartanNash’s retail sales rose nearly 2% during Q3 to $675 million as incremental sales from the Metcalfe’s Market stores offset lower demand from consumers.
