Kroger looking to buy Bi-Lo/Winn-Dixie?

[thelakelander]

Rumors are swirling that Jax-based Bi-Lo Holdings, LLC. could be acquired by Kroger.

Midwestern grocer Kroger Co. may be looking to enter Florida in a big way.

Analyst Carol Levenson wrote that " all signs point to management's willingness to make a major acquisition" in a report after analyzing the company's bonds, reports Cincinnati Business First, a sister news organization.

Executives of Cincinnati-based Kroger (NYSE: KR) have indicated recently that it could make another acquisition before long, according to Cincinnati Business First. The company bought Harris Teeter Supermarkets Inc. in 2014, which gave it a Florida presence of exactly one store -- in Fernandina Beach.

WCPO-9, the ABC affiliate in Cincinnati, says Kroger could be "plotting a Florida invasion."

Full article: http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2015/01/18/kroger-looking-to-bag-a-major-acquisition-could-it.html

http://www.wcpo.com/money/local-business-news/kroger-co-kr-could-be-plotting-a-florida-invasion

[Buforddawg]

Interesting.  I do like Kroger, shopped there when I lived in Atlanta (pre-Publix) and when I lived in Columbus, OH.  It would certainly be interesting to see how Kroger vs. Publix would play out.   Friends from NJ recently moved to WPB and weren't to happy that Publix didn't have a "membership" card for member only sales.  My response was that I like it that another company is not selling my information, which happens with those "membership" discount cards.

Competition is a good thing, because I am not a Winn-Dixie fan. Must be because I was raised in Lake Wales and I went to Publix every Saturday with my mom. 

[coredumped]

Interesting.  I do like Kroger, shopped there when I lived in Atlanta (pre-Publix) and when I lived in Columbus, OH.  It would certainly be interesting to see how Kroger vs. Publix would play out.   Friends from NJ recently moved to WPB and weren't to happy that Publix didn't have a "membership" card for member only sales.  My response was that I like it that another company is not selling my information, which happens with those "membership" discount cards.

Competition is a good thing, because I am not a Winn-Dixie fan. Must be because I was raised in Lake Wales and I went to Publix every Saturday with my mom. 

I agree that competition is a good, but I wouldn't put Kroger on par with Publix, they seem to be a targeting a bit of a lower market. I've been to some of the ones in the mid-west and they made winn-dixie shine!

But, on a positive note, Kroger owns Harris Teeter, which I put more on par with Publix, maybe we'll see them come back in to town (the only one I know left is in fernandina).

[I-10east]

Hopefully this doesn't happen. I know, I'm the bad guy for wanting a local company to stay around, right? 

[peestandingup]

Local or not, I'm not gonna root for Winn-Dixie because they really do suck & being "local" doesn't trump everything. Their prices are high, the help is almost always bottom tier & sour, their selection stinks & they force those stupid scan cards on people to save a few bucks. I could never figure out why people went there.

We had Krogers in a few places we've lived before & while they're not quite Publix, they're tons better than WD. I'd put them on the same level as something like a Harris Teeter.

[I-10east]

I could never figure out why people went there.

I fell the same about high priced Publix, and why it's on this supposed 'supermarket supremacy' pedestal. It's just a regular supermarket IMO with 'Disney cast member-esque' borderline fake smiling personalities (ohhh, superior customer service), some specialized Sushi bar or whatever that I could care less about, and a decent deli and fruits and veggie selection. Merchandise selection is all selective, because I'm not all that wild about Publix's overall selection. No one I know shops at Publix, but as long as they continue to get the elderly check writers and yuppie crowds (mostly whites) to come there, they will continue to be very successful.

I agree that WD is clearly going downhill. WD is also a victim of being a traditional supermarket, in the age that they are dying. I agree that it has problems with cashiers with an attitude etc. I've even encountered totally unacceptable issues, like expired beef jerky on the shelf there. WD used to have reasonable prices, now they aren't. Maybe I'm naive to think that WD will change for the better, because it still haven't. I do most of my grocery shopping at NAS Jax commissary/Walmart/Target/Rowe's FWIW.

[Ocklawaha]

I could never figure out why people went there.

I fell the same about high priced Publix, and why it's on this supposed 'supermarket supremacy' pedestal. It's just a regular supermarket IMO with 'Disney cast member-esque' borderline fake smiling personalities (ohhh, superior customer service), some specialized Sushi bar or whatever that I could care less about, and a decent deli and fruits and veggie selection. Merchandise selection is all selective, because I'm not all that wild about Publix's overall selection. No one I know shops at Publix, but as long as they continue to get the elderly check writers and yuppie crowds (mostly whites) to come there, they will continue to be very successful.

You might want to reconsider your views on Publix I10E, those smiles are not painted on, they're real. The company was named as one of FORTUNE's "100 Best Companies to Work For" (1998–2014) It was also listed as one of The Great Rated! People's Picks: 20 Great Workplaces in Retail (2014).  Recognized by Glassdoor.com's "Employees' Choice Awards" as one of the Top 50 Best Places to Work (2014) and it ranked No. 34 in 24/7 Wall St.com's list of "America's Best Companies to Work For" (2014). Publix ranked as one of the top 10 companies on the Forbes list of the largest private companies (1996–2013).

Minorities? Disabled? Publix was awarded the Catalyst Blue Ribbon Board of FORTUNE 500 Companies with Multiple Women Directors (1998–2013)
Named as United Cerebral Palsy Outstanding Employer for people with disabilities (2013). 38% of their workforce is made up of minorities and a full 49% are women. They have a nondiscrimination policy that includes sexual orientation as well as benefits for same sex couples. Many locations also offer child care packages, some are on-site facilities.

They are also the country's fourth-largest grocer, and the largest employee-owned company in the nation. Employees get generous annual stock infusions. The full time deli clerk pulls down $26,753 a year.

You might not like the selection, but if you don't simply ask for whatever you are looking for, they will typically have it at the counter within a day or two and will give you a call to let you know when it arrives.  At a time when every company in the country has soaped up the windows and abandoned northwest Jacksonville in a mass stampede,  just one major retailer has pumped in money and plopped a modern store right in the middle of the 'hood' at Gateway Shopping Center... at the request of the neighbors no less.

Hopefully this doesn't happen. I know, I'm the bad guy for wanting a local company to stay around, right? 

Now this is just a freaking weird statement... NOBODY, and I mean NOBODY I know of wants anything 'Jacksonville' to fail, especially our home grown industries and institutions. I know for a fact that nobody at MJ does. We pick on things to improve them, much as your DI did in boot camp or your high school coach did during PE. We all want a better Jacksonville, and sometimes prodding, poking, demonstrating, suggesting, comparing and being ruthlessly honest is painful, but the goal of all of us at MJ is a better Jacksonville.

[peestandingup]

In the case of WD, I know for a fact people have been bringing up these same exact issues basically since we arrived in town (like 8 years ago), so the issues themselves are probably older than that. Yet not much has changed with them. So the poke & prodding doesn't seem to be working & they've done little or nothing to really fix anything. If that's the case, then what do you do? Local or not, you probably just stop going, and the company eventually looks to sell out. Which is likely what's happening.

As far as Publix, I think most their employees are genuinely nice people & that's who they hire. Sure, it sometimes has a "too friendly" & a never speak ill about anything vibe, but so what. I'd rather have that then surly & rude, which you're sure to get at WD 9 outta 10 times.

[avonjax]

I could never figure out why people went there.

I fell the same about high priced Publix, and why it's on this supposed 'supermarket supremacy' pedestal. It's just a regular supermarket IMO with 'Disney cast member-esque' borderline fake smiling personalities (ohhh, superior customer service), some specialized Sushi bar or whatever that I could care less about, and a decent deli and fruits and veggie selection. Merchandise selection is all selective, because I'm not all that wild about Publix's overall selection. No one I know shops at Publix, but as long as they continue to get the elderly check writers and yuppie crowds (mostly whites) to come there, they will continue to be very successful.

I agree that WD is clearly going downhill. WD is also a victim of being a traditional supermarket, in the age that they are dying. I agree that it has problems with cashiers with an attitude etc. I've even encountered totally unacceptable issues, like expired beef jerky on the shelf there. WD used to have reasonable prices, now they aren't. Maybe I'm naive to think that WD will change for the better, because it still haven't. I do most of my grocery shopping at NAS Jax commissary/Walmart/Target/Rowe's FWIW.

WalMart is horrible but Target's not bad. Remember most of us can't shop at the commissary. Publix is BY FAR the best major chain in the South. (and the "high priced" just doesn't really describe Publix anymore.)

[mtraininjax]

Not even Ben Davis, himself, can save the Winn Dixie Legacy. Kroger is a good store with good offerings. They will shake loose the swirl of the drain that WD has been in for the last 20 years.

[I-10east]

You might want to reconsider your views on Publix I10E, those smiles are not painted on, they're real. The company was named as one of FORTUNE's "100 Best Companies to Work For" (1998–2014) It was also listed as one of The Great Rated! People's Picks: 20 Great Workplaces in Retail (2014).  Recognized by Glassdoor.com's "Employees' Choice Awards" as one of the Top 50 Best Places to Work (2014) and it ranked No. 34 in 24/7 Wall St.com's list of "America's Best Companies to Work For" (2014). Publix ranked as one of the top 10 companies on the Forbes list of the largest private companies (1996–2013).

Minorities? Disabled? Publix was awarded the Catalyst Blue Ribbon Board of FORTUNE 500 Companies with Multiple Women Directors (1998–2013)
Named as United Cerebral Palsy Outstanding Employer for people with disabilities (2013). 38% of their workforce is made up of minorities and a full 49% are women. They have a nondiscrimination policy that includes sexual orientation as well as benefits for same sex couples. Many locations also offer child care packages, some are on-site facilities.

They are also the country's fourth-largest grocer, and the largest employee-owned company in the nation. Employees get generous annual stock infusions. The full time deli clerk pulls down $26,753 a year.

You might not like the selection, but if you don't simply ask for whatever you are looking for, they will typically have it at the counter within a day or two and will give you a call to let you know when it arrives.  At a time when every company in the country has soaped up the windows and abandoned northwest Jacksonville in a mass stampede,  just one major retailer has pumped in money and plopped a modern store right in the middle of the 'hood' at Gateway Shopping Center... at the request of the neighbors no less.

Yada yada yada, no need to foist your opinions on me like this is a communist country. You sound like a Publix representative, listing all of their awards etc, yikes!! I'm sticking to everything that I said. I get so sick and tired of hearing how great Publix is, when I don't think that it's all that. I said that Publix will continue to be successful, but it's not for me.

[I-10east]

Publix is BY FAR the best major chain in the South. (and the "high priced" just doesn't really describe Publix anymore.)

Like in most supermarkets, some things are priced okay (mainly the Bogo deals concerning Publix) but Publix still have plenty of high priced items. Their meats might be the priciest in Jax. Rowe's has very reasonably priced meats. I'm sorry, there are just too many cheaper options for me not to consider Publix high priced. You and most might not like Walmart, but those 'vs Publix' price comparison commercials told the truth.

[FSBA]

Losing one of the few Fortune 500's based in Jacksonville would suck but from a competition stand point I wouldn't mind Kroger in Florida.

[acme54321]

Publix is BY FAR the best major chain in the South. (and the "high priced" just doesn't really describe Publix anymore.)

Like in most supermarkets, some things are priced okay (mainly the Bogo deals concerning Publix) but Publix still have plenty of high priced items. Their meats might be the priciest in Jax. Rowe's has very reasonably priced meats. I'm sorry, there are just too many cheaper options for me not to consider Publix high priced. You and most might not like Walmart, but those 'vs Publix' price comparison commercials told the truth.

If your only consideration is price then your conclusions make sense.

[I-10east]

People are so defensive about Publix like it's their family business or something. I'm no longer gonna talk about the old played out 'Supermarket wars' discussion; Publix is the omnipotent end all be all; it's the Shao Kahn of the supermarket world!!!! I hope that made all of you in green and white happy, Christ... 

If Kroger buys BI-LO, don't be so confident that everything is going to suddenly change to Kroger. Kroger brought Harris Teeter, and the name stayed. BI-LO bought WD, and the name stayed.