Kroger and Albertsons looking to sell 400 stores to wholesale grocery company, report says
Summit Daily/Mark Fox
Grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons – the respective parent companies of King Soopers and Safeway – are reportedly in the midst of negotiating an almost $2 billion deal with C&S Wholesale Grocers and SoftBank Group Corp. to sell hundreds of their stores.
The potential acquisition could impact more than 400 locations, including an unidentified number in “mountain states,” Reuters reported. The would-be purchaser, New Hampshire-based wholesale company C&S Wholesale Grocers, would receive financial support from SoftBank Group Corp., a Japanese holding company.
An announcement about the deal could come “as soon as this week,” with the stores sold for “antitrust reasons,” according to Bloomberg News, which originally reported the story on Tuesday.
Representatives for C&S Wholesale declined to comment on Thursday, while spokespeople for Kroger, Albertsons and SoftBank Group Co. didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
The controversial $25 billion proposed merger between Kroger and Albertsons – expected to close in early 2024 – has received criticism from state and federal government officials over the risk of forming a grocery monopoly, which could hurt employees, consumers and competition within the industry.
Read more from Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton at DenverPost.com.
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