Kyle Stonis
Senior Vice President
Atlanta, Georgia
Recent expansions by several big grocery chains based in the southeastern United States may soon prove to be an unexpected bonus for the local real estate markets.
Just last month, Rouses Markets took over the ownership of six former Belle Foods stores in Alabama from the Associated Wholesale Grocers. Rouses’ expansion was its first into Alabama, building off its current portfolio of 38 stores situated in Louisiana and Mississippi with indications of additional expansionary plans in the works. The new Rouse stores will be closed during the multimillion dollar remodeling of the interiors, which will include the installation of sausage kitchens, seafood boiling rooms and other features for which the brand is known.
Jacksonville, Florida based supermarket chain Bi-Lo Holdings, LLC, is currently working on acquiring 155 Sweetbay, Harveys and Reid’s stores from the Delhaize Group and another 21 Piggly Wiggly stores from Piggly Wiggly Carolina. Bi-Lo Holdings, LLC, meanwhile, will be paying an estimated $265 million for stores in their acquisition pipeline. The company continues to diversify its expansion plans through the launching of an initial public stock offering which took place just last month.
However, it was Florida-based Publix Super Markets that made the most audacious move of all recently, buying its way into the Carolinas – a region that has long been the turf of supermarket chain Harris Teeter. Publix has plans to debut 13 Carolina locations, seven of which are existing BI-LO stores in Charlotte, Matthews, Lake Wylie, Huntersville and Rock Hill. Additionally, Publix will build new stores in Ballantyne, South End, Mint Hill and Cornelius, accelerating the grocer’s entry into the region faster than competitors expected. Publix Super Markets is currently listed by Forbes as the seventh largest private company in the country with $26.9 billion in earnings last year and approximately 1,073 grocery stores, employing over 152,000 people.
The aforementioned grocer expansions throughout the southeast will translate to more opportunities for real estate developers, owners, and brokers alike, while further confirming the slow but steady commercial real estate recovery across the region.