The last two Winn-Dixie grocery stores in the United States will close at the end of this month.
The grocery chain is closing locations across the country as it changes its name to “The Winn-Dixie Company,” with two more closing in Birmingham, Alabama.
After more than 60 years serving the city, one location will close on March 21 and the other on March 22, as the company shifts its focus to Florida. The grocer has already acquired three Hitchcock's Markets in the Sunshine State and plans to open them later this year.
Before store closures, shoppers will be able to save between 20 and 40 percent off their closing sales.
Winn-Dixie's parent company, Southeastern Grocers, has already closed stores in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi and sold them to competing grocery chains, including Food City, Piggly Wiggly and Aldi.
Discussing the company's transition, Anthony Hucker, CEO of Southeastern Grocers, described why Winn-Dixie is focusing its attention on Florida.
“For a century, Winn-Dixie has proudly called Florida home,” he said. “As we enter our next century as The Winn-Dixie Company, a new 100-year-old company, we are accelerating growth where our roots run deepest, while staying true to our purpose of feeding and enriching the communities, families and neighbors who have supported us for generations.”
News of Winn-Dixie's closing comes two years after Aldi announced it would buy 400 Winn-Dixie and Harveys locations in the southern United States.
Under the merger agreement proposed at the time, Aldi acquired all of the outstanding shares of Southeastern Grocers Inc.
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Aldi said the deal supports its long-term growth strategy in the United States, where it hopes to have 2,400 stores by the end of this year. The Winn-Dixie and Harveys supermarkets it is acquiring are primarily located in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.
Aldi said it would convert some locations to its own brand and format, reducing costs with features such as reduced inventories and self-bagging. But it will operate some stores under the Winn-Dixie and Harveys brands.
The deal came amid broader consolidation in the grocery industry as customers increasingly defect to big box stores like Walmart, which controls more than 20 percent of U.S. grocery sales.
