Aldi To Acquire All Winn-Dixie Grocery Stores

The Jacksonville-based Southeastern Grocers Inc. announced recently that they had entered an agreement with Aldi to buy all their Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket grocery stores, including about 400 Winn-Dixie locations in the southern United States.

About 75% of Winn-Dixie stores are scattered around Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, and some of these will be rebranded as Aldi, while others will retain their usual name. The deal is expected to be concluded in the first half of 2024, after which Aldi will take over all Winn-Dixie and Harvey stores.

Aldi has been on a growth streak

Aldi has been experiencing tremendous growth in the southeast US over the past year, despite the impact of high inflation on customer spending. However, in Florida, Aldi competes with Publix stores, which ranks number one. Publix grew by 1.2 million square feet in 2022, and Aldi by 1.87 million square feet.

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Aldi is the fourth most-popular grocery store in Florida, with 43 million visits, and Winn-Dixie takes the second position with over 100 million visits. The parent company to Winn-Dixie had experienced some business downtimes in the past and is now divesting its stores.

“Our successful transformational journey has created a unique opportunity with leading partners who share our vision and common commitments to creating value for their customers,” Southeastern Grocers’ CEO, Anthony Hucker, said in a statement.

Aldi promises to help southeasterners save on groceries

In a statement, Aldi CEO Jason Hart assured customers, especially Southeastern residents, that the acquisition will make grocery shopping a better experience for them. “The time was right to build on our growth momentum and help residents in the Southeast save on their grocery bills,” he stated.

He added that they plan to “add 120 new stores nationwide this year to reach a total of more than 2,400 stores by year-end.”

“The transaction supports our long-term growth strategy across the United States,” Jason said. Southeastern Grocers’ CEO, Anthony, also affirmed this, stating that the acquisition will “fuel a phenomenal experience for our customers, new opportunities for our associates, and increased value for our shareholders.”