Eighty-seven years after Frank Andronicos opened his first grocery store, Andronico’s grocery chain was acquired by Safeway, and by the end of this year will be re-branded as Safeway Community Markets.
Safeway’s acquisition of Andronico’s two stores in Berkeley, California, and its other three — in San Francisco, San Anselmo and Los Altos — means that the entire chain is slated to undergo the transition and each store will be closed for a short period of time during the changeover.
The acquisition didn’t come as a surprise to Suzy Monford, Andronico’s Chief Executive Officer who was hired to innovate and get the once bankrupt company back on its feet. Monford and her team did both: Their innovations included in-store initiatives such as Fit Market and Instacart shopping, and their business plan got the company solvent and a viable acquisition candidate.
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