Stop & Shop said it will close 32 underperforming grocery stores in the Northeast by the end of the year.
In a press release Friday, July 12, the chain, which is owned by the Dutch supermarket company Ahold Delhaize, said it will close 10 stores in New Jersey, eight stores in Massachusetts, seven stores in New York, five stores in Connecticut and two stores in Rhode Island.
Those stores include the one at 130 Skyline Drive, Ringwod.
The company said employees at affected stores would be offered other jobs within the company. Stop & Shop wouldn’t say how many people are employed at the 32 stores.
The Azarian Group, which manages the Fieldstone Park Shopping Center in Ringwood where Stop & Shop is the largest tenant, said it is actively exploring options to fill the space after the store closes.
“We understand the community’s concern over the loss of our longtime grocery tenant,” said John Azarian, chief executive of the Azarian Group. “While the decision to close was made solely by the grocery chain at the national level, we are viewing this as an opportunity for positive change in the community.
“We are now presented with the chance to introduce a different store to the center, one that would operate as brand new and would allow for further pursuit of updated renovations to the center as a whole.”
Azarian said Dollar General, which also is located in the shopping center, has committed to do a renovation that will start in September.
Azarian’s property management division also plans pothole repairs, landscaping and physical updates, including a septic system replacement and extensive roof repairs.
Stabilize the business
Stop & Shop, which got its start in 1914 in Somerville, Mass., operates about 400 grocery stores and has 60,000 employees.
In an interview with the Associated Press, Stop & Shop president Gordon Reid said the closures are a difficult but necessary step to stabilize the business.
“These stores are not making a profit,” he said. “They take away from the whole organization. We need to focus on the parts that we need to invest in and want to invest in.”
Reid said Stop & Shop will continue to build new stores and remodel existing ones. The brand, which has remodeled 190 stores since 2018, also will invest in lower prices and promotions at its remaining stores, he said.
Stop & Shop will continue to have buying power even with fewer stores because of its parent company, according to Reid. Ahold Delhaize operates more than 7,700 grocery stores worldwide, including the Food Lion and Giant brands in the U.S.
Burt Flickinger, a longtime retail consultant and owner of Strategic Resource Group, said many of Stop & Shop’s problems were self-inflicted. The brand closed fresh meat and seafood counters in some stores, for example, which cut down on the amount customers spent in those stores.
Stop & Shop also is being squeezed by big rivals, such as Walmart and Costco, and discount chains, such as Aldi and Lidl.
“Wherever a Target, a Walmart a Costco or a BJ’s has been built, a Stop and Shop’s in jeopardy,” Flickinger said. “While they have a plan going forward, I’m not sure the plan’s going to be fully competitive given the intensifying level of competition.”
Reid said Stop & Shop can compete because it has convenient locations, high quality and a good product assortment. Lowering prices will help the business, he said.
“Our customers love Stop & Shop, and they want us to have a strong future,” he said.