Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/122387
r e t A i l i n g t o d A y supermarket sweep the u.s. grocery sector is undergoing seismic changes A By Beth Mattson-Teig cquisitions, consolidations, urban expansions — the u.s. grocery industry headlines tell a dynamic story. Even during the downturn, expansions and repositionings within this highly competitive sector helped spark retail development and backfill empty retail space. "the grocery segment is always busy," said david J. livingston, a Milwaukee-based supermarket-site analyst. "Good, wellrun grocers are immune to recessions. only the ones that are asleep at 50 SCt / m a y 2 0 1 3 the wheel get hurt." Even when large supermarket companies announce massive store closings, he says, many of the stores get recycled as other grocery chains take them over. Growth is seen in various grocery store segments, including traditional, value-priced, upscale and organic, and ethnic grocery stores. Roughly 1,000 supermarkets opened in the u.s. last year, according to chainlinks Retail advisors. the list of chains adding stores is sizable: aldi, HEB, Meijer, Publix, Wegmans, Winco and Woodman's are among them. sprouts Farmers Markets and trader Joe's are stepping up expansion plans, and Whole Foods opened 10 stores in this first quarter alone. Walmart is on a huge growth spurt, rolling out some 60 stores in the u.s. last year, and it continues to expand both its supercenters and its smaller neighborhood Market and Walmart Express formats. "nothing has changed with grocer anchors being a favored anchor tenant," said Garrick Brown, director of research at cassidy turley, in san Francisco. "if anything, they probably have even stronger standing." as bigbox retailers continue to struggle, grocery chains are among the few retailers with the ability to occupy large spaces. Grocery chains are in demand as landlords seek tenants that are relatively resistant to e-commerce. these days grocery chains favor urban in-fill sites. "Before the downturn, grocers were trying to get out ahead of the residential growth," said Jodie W. Mclean, president and chief investment officer of columbia, s.c.–based