Kroger says no Fred Meyer stores to be sold to win merger approval

Published 10:52 am Wednesday, September 13, 2023

No Fred Meyer stores in Oregon are slated to be sold as Kroger and Albertsons seek to cement a $24.6 billion merger, a spokesperson for the regional chain said.

Kroger and Albertsons unveiled their plans last week to sell more than 400 stores, including at least 49 stores in Oregon, to C&S Wholesale Grocers as part of their efforts to win regulatory approval for their planned merger. The sale agreement is intended to appease federal antitrust regulators who are scrutinizing how the merger would curb customer choices and reduce competition in the grocery industry.

New Hampshire-based C&S Wholesale Grocers has agreed to pay $1.9 billion to acquire 413 stores — including some from Kroger’s QFC chains and Albertsons’ Safeway — spread out across 17 states and Washington, D.C., from Kroger and Albertsons.

The deal includes the sale of the QFC, Carrs and Mariano’s banners to C&S, as well as a licensing arrangement that would allow C&S to use the Albertsons brand name in Arizona, California, Colorado and Wyoming, according to announcements from the companies. All fuel centers and pharmacies associated with the divested stores will remain open.

Fred Meyer’s retail network will remain intact, said Tiffany Sanders, corporate affairs manager for the Kroger subsidiary.

In a statement, Sanders said that the divestiture plan “includes the sale of the QFC banner name and some QFC stores but does not include the sale of any Fred Meyer stores at this time.”

The agreement also includes selling eight distribution centers and two corporate offices to C&S Wholesale Grocers. Sanders did not immediately respond to questions about whether Fred Meyer’s distribution centers or corporate offices in Oregon will remain intact.

“Because we are still in the regulatory process, we are not able to share the specific locations included in the agreement,” Sanders said in a statement.

Last week, Kroger also declined to specify which stores in Oregon would be sold off to C&S. The company also declined to say whether the Fred Meyer corporate office in Portland would be among the two slated to be sold.

Kroger and Albertsons each operate more than 2,000 stores across the U.S.