JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Bi-Lo Holdings, LLC, parent company of BI-LO and Winn-Dixie supermarket chains, today announced the difficult but necessary decision to close eight of the acquired Delhaize America (Euronext Brussels: DELB – NYSE: DEG) and five Bi-Lo Holdings stores due to close geographic proximity. Both companies announced that they have received approval from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to proceed with the transaction to acquire the Sweetbay, Harveys and Reid’s supermarket chains from Delhaize Group pending the divestiture of 12 stores by Bi-Lo Holdings and Delhaize Group retaining two stores and converting them to the Food Lion banner. The FTC’s approval is pursuant to a consent order accepted by the FTC for public comment on February 25, 2014. The order is subject to final approval by the FTC after the close of a 30-day comment period.
“Given the number of stores we are acquiring, we anticipated that we may be asked by the FTC to divest some stores to close the deal. In addition, with the close proximity of some of the Bi-Lo Holdings and Delhaize stores, we also knew that we would have to close a few stores as part of the acquisition,” said R. Randall Onstead, president and CEO of Bi-Lo Holdings. “We appreciate the many contributions our associates in these stores have made, and we will ensure they are treated respectfully and have the opportunity to pursue other open positions in nearby stores.”
The stores planned for closure are as follows:
Store Location *Closure Date
Sweetbay #1906 Naples, Fla. March 22, 2014
Sweetbay #1798 Dade City, Fla. April 5, 2014
Sweetbay #1872 Zephyrhills, Fla. April 5, 2014
Harveys #2360 Green Cove Springs, Fla. May 3, 2014
Harveys #2364 Tallahassee, Fla. May 3, 2014
Reid's #1507 Walterboro, S.C. May 31, 2014
Reid's #2158 Cayce, S.C. May 31, 2014
Reid's #2612 Orangeburg, S.C. May 31, 2014
Winn-Dixie #699 St. Petersburg, Fla. May 10, 2014
Winn-Dixie #624 Tarpon Springs, Fla. May 17, 2014
Winn-Dixie #647 Seffner, Fla. May 24, 2014
Winn-Dixie #101 Moultrie, Ga. June 14, 2014
BI-LO #5423 Aiken, S.C. July 12, 2014
*Sorted by banner
In May 2013, Bi-Lo Holdings originally announced its intent to acquire 155 operating Sweetbay, Harveys and Reid’s supermarket chains from Delhaize Group. At the close of the transaction, Bi-Lo Holdings will operate 134 of the stores.
About Bi-Lo Holdings
Bi-Lo Holdings, LLC, the parent company of BI-LO and Winn-Dixie grocery stores, is the ninth-largest traditional supermarket chain in the United States. The company employs nearly 60,000 associates who serve customers in 697 grocery stores and 482 in-store pharmacies throughout the eight southeastern states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. BI-LO and Winn-Dixie are well-known and well-respected regional brands with deep heritages, strong neighborhood ties, proud histories of giving back, talented and loyal associates, and strong commitments to providing the best possible quality and value to customers. For more information, please visit www.bi-lo.com and www.winn-dixie.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes forward-looking statements about future events, which involve risks and uncertainties. Generally, the words “believe,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “project,” “will,” “could,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “likely,” “goal,” “target,” “objective,” “outlook,” “seek” and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which generally are not historical in nature.
Forward-looking statements reflect our current expectations, based on currently available information, and are not guarantees of performance. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, these expectations could prove inaccurate as such statements involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our ability to control or predict. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties, or other risks or uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial, materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, estimated or projected. For these reasons, we caution you against relying on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. Except as may be required by applicable law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which they are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Source: Bi-Lo Holdings
