The long-time Albertsons in Kirkland’s Juanita neighborhood will close mid-October, leaving many out of work or forced to relocate to another store. The nearest Albertsons is in Woodinville.
“(The store) was not meeting its numbers,” said Lilia Rodriguez, communications manager for Albertsons. “(Supervalu’s) goal is to ensure the success of the entire company.”
In early September, Supervalu Inc. announced the closure of 60 underperforming and “non-strategic” stores across the U.S. Twenty-seven Albertsons, 20 Save-A-Lots, four ACME’s and one Jewel-Osco will close before Dec. 1.
Washington’s 10 closures include Albertsons stores located in Kirkland, north Marysville, Benson and 208th in Kent, Lacey, north Auburn, Bonny Lake in Sumner and Save-A-Lots closures in Port Orchard and Tacoma. Nineteen stores will close in California and eight in Oregon.
“The decisions are never easy because of the impact a store closure has on our team members, our customers and our communities,” Supervalu President Wayne Sales said in a news release. “(The) announcement reflects our commitment to move with a greater sense of urgency to reduce costs and improve shareholder value.”
The Juanita Albertsons, located at 9826 Northeast 132nd St., opened in December 1970.
Michael Olson, the City of Kirkland’s deputy director of finance, said the 11 large grocery stores in Kirkland generate about $600,000 in annual sales-tax revenue a year. The smaller stores bring in around $20,000 and the larger ones amass about $30,000 to $40,000 a year.
“I would say Albertsons was in line with the small stores, that’s why it’s closing,” Olson said.
The Daily News of Los Angeles reported that the number of workers varies from 50 to 100, depending on store size.
“Most of the affected team members are represented by labor unions,” Rodriguez said. “So they’ll abide by their collective bargaining agreements. Those with seniority will have bumping rights.”
Many grocery store workers are under the United Food and Commercial Workers union.
Supervalu’s closures over the next three years may generate between $80 to $90 million by monetizing real estate, cutting “cash operating losses” and selling assets.
“Cash generated from these actions will be used to reduce outstanding debt and for other general corporate purposes,” said a Supervalu news release. “These closures will also be accretive to net earnings.”
