ALDI, a German supermarket chain, has agreed to acquire hundreds of Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarkets stores across the southeastern U.S.
The company’s announcement of the acquisition, which did not include terms, noted that it will give ALDI 299 additional stores in Florida, 39 in Alabama, 28 in Louisiana, 25 in Georgia, and six in Mississippi. Those additions will bring the company’s total store count to roughly 2,400.
“Like ALDI, Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket have long histories and many loyal customers in the southeast and we look forward to serving them in the years to come,” ALDI CEO Jason Hart said. “The time was right to build on our growth momentum and help residents in the southeast save on their grocery bills.”
“ALDI will operate Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket stores with the same level of care and focus on quality and service, as we also evaluate which locations will convert to the ALDI format to better support the neighborhoods we’ll now have the privilege of serving,” Hart continued. “For those stores we do not convert, our intention is that these continue to operate as Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket stores.”
The acquisition, along with Southeastern Grocers’ concurrent announcement of its divestiture of Fresco y Mas to investment firm Fresco Retail Group LLC, its only other brand under the parent company, marks the end of Southeastern Grocers’ independence as a brand.
Previously known as BI-LO, the company merged with Winn-Dixie in 2011 to create an organization with nearly 700 stores primarily situated in the southeastern U.S.
It then underwent various restructurings over the next decade, with some stores sold to independent operators, to Ahold Delhaize, or otherwise closed, ending BI-LO’s run as a brand in 2021.
The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2024, subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions.
