The economy’s continuing struggles during the past 12 months led to another year of challenges for many of the Mid-Atlantic’s wholesale grocers. Chains and independents alike felt the squeeze of shoppers tightening their purse strings, and the diversity of competition for grocery dollars continued to affect all business.
One company that continued to perform solidly despite those challenges was Wakefern. The food industry’s largest grocery co-operative rang up estimated wholesale sales of $9.8 billion for 2010. It supplied 235 ShopRite stores and another 47 PriceRite discount units as well as the 33 store Gristede’s chain based in Manhattan. This year marked the co-ops second year of operation in Maryland. Last year, Klein’s became a ShopRite operator and this year Collin’s ShopRite opened its first Maryland location in Glen Burnie.
C&S Wholesale Grocers ranked second among all full-service distributors in the region. The Keene, NH based wholesaler has made its mark on the industry as a third-party distributor to larger chains. Volume for the year was $8.2 billion, with 1,310 stores serviced. C&S was affected by volume declines at Super Fresh and Pathmark, but did enhance its business by gaining parts of Target’s growing PFresh business. Key accounts serviced include: Safeway, A&P, Giant/Carlisle and Giant/Landover, in various capacities. Things look brighter next year as C&S will have added Giant/Landover’s dry grocery business based in Landover, MD as well as supplying the 57 Foodtown stores in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania and Geresbeck’s three Baltimore stores. However, those developments took effect after our measuring period closed October 31, 2010.
The wholesale division of Supervalu had a tough year as it saw its long time supply agreement with Ukrop’s dissolve as that family owned chain was purchased by Ahold.
The Mechanicsville, VA based division of the large Eden Prairie, MN based firm ranked third among all wholesale grocers in the Mid-Atlantic. The company also struggled with same store sales decreases at its sister retail firms divisions in the marketplace, Acme, Shoppers and Farm Fresh.T he company continues to supply such strong independents as Redner’s, B. Green, Magruder’s, Graul’s and Karns and is seeing progress through the growth of ethnic markets in the region. For the year, Supervalu serviced 836 stores and amassed wholesale volume of $4.75 billion.
Ranking next was the McLane Company, the largest convenience store distributor in the country. Primarily operating in this region from a 653,000 square foot depot in Falmouth, VA (one of 19 grocery warehouses the company operates nationally), McLane’s wholesale volume in the region is estimated to be $2.1 billion. Its major accounts are 7-Eleven and Wawa.
With 41 high-volume club stores in the Mid-Atlantic, Costco now ranks fifth among all wholesale companies in the region. Wholesale volume for Costco, as well as Sam’s Club and BJ’s. have been extrapolated to include sales of grocery, HBC, general merchandise and tobacco. Utilizing that formula, Costco’s 41 club stores in the market rang up sales of $1.65 billion .
Associated Wholesalers Inc. (AWI) is the largest wholesale cooperative operating in the Mid-Atlantic. The company’s primary distribution center is based in Robesonia, PA and it also operates a secondary facility in York, PA. AWI serviced 963 retail stores and rang up sales of $1.2 billion. The company continued to do a solid job serving mainly independent retailers in the Central Pennsylvania area, including multi-store operators such as McKay’s, Kennie’s. Darrenkamp’s, Stauffer’s of Kissel Hill and Lauer’s.
White Rose, a division of AWI based in Carteret, NJ services independent groups in the metro New York market and also is the primary supplier of the Delaware valley area’s Thriftway and Shop ‘n Bag stores. Volume for the year is estimated at $1.2 billion with 1,550 locations serviced. White Rose had a fairly stable year, but will take a hit in near year’s study as it lost its Foodtown business after this year’s measuring period ended.
The two division of AWI made changes at the top in the past year as Bernie Ellis was named president of AWI and Joe Fantozzi was named to the same post at White Rose. Long time AWI executive Christopher Michael retains the chairman and CEO titles.
BJ’s Wholesale Club and Sam’s Club (a division of Wal-Mart) ranked eighth and ninth respectively among all distributors in the region. BJ’s 58 club units rang up estimated extrapolated sales of $1.13 billion. Sam’s operated 47 club stores in the and amassed estimated sales of $712.6 million.
United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI), grew its business in natural and organic as well as the specialty side of the business. The Providence, RI based company serviced approximately 306 stores in the Mid-Atlantic with approximately $510 million in volume.
Burris Retail Logistics, which carved out its reputation distributing frozen foods, has expanded into other departments over the past decade. The Milford, DE based company, which operates Mid-Atlantic depots in Harrington, DE; New Castle, DE; Elkton, MD; Federalsburg, MD; and Springfield, MA garnered $500 million in wholesale volume over the past 12 months. The company had a solid year but was suffered the loss of its leader when CEO Bob Burris passed away in September.
Cooper-Booth, based in Mountville, PA where it maintains a 100,000 square foot depot had a volume of $372 million at its approximately 1,471 accounts serviced in the Mid-Atlantic.
Next up is Eby-Brown ($339 million), operating warehouses in Baltimore, Philadelphia and Brooklyn, NY.
Bozzuto’s continued to build its infrastructure in the Mid-Atlantic, doing business in the region from a distribution center in Allentown, PA. Its approximately 100 retail accounts in the market helped it garner $330 million in Mid-Atlantic volume.
Other wholesalers in the area included: Merchant’s Terminal ($130 million), Quality Foods ($98 million) and Economy Wholesale ($6.7 million).