Supply chain issues continued to be the primary challenge for wholesale grocers that service food retailers in the Mid-Atlantic marketing area. However, even with a shortage of truck drivers and warehouse workers, increased wages, and difficulties in receiving product from manufacturers and producers, most of the full-service distributors in the region managed to post increased sales when viewing revenue on a two-year stacked basis. The primary catalyst for their incremental volume gains was inflation.
Leading the pack this year was member-owned Wakefern Food Corp. which celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2021. The Keasbey, NJ-based co-op rang up $13.9 billion in wholesale volume which was generated primarily through the success of its 360 retail supermarkets under the ShopRite, Price Rite Marketplace, The Fresh Grocer, Dearborn Market, Fairway Market and Gourmet Garage banners. Wakefern’s market area covers New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island, and includes dominant positions in the large Metro New York and Delaware Valley markets. Just before presstime, the company announced that its largest member, Saker ShopRite, had acquired another long-time member – Perlmart – in a deal that gives the Saker family a greater presence on the Jersey Shore. Additionally, earlier this year Wakefern named company veteran Steve Savas as president of its corporately-owned ShopRite Supermarkets division. The company, which also services non-member retailers, lost the Kings Food Market business earlier this year when its supply contract with the once bankrupt retailer expired. Kings and Balducci’s were acquired by Albertsons/Acme in early 2021 and those stores are now supplied directly from the Albertsons distribution center in Denver. PA.
C&S Wholesale Grocers, the nation’s largest privately-owned wholesaler, ranked second among all retail distributors in the Mid-Atlantic region. During the year, C&S added more than 100 Piggly Wiggly stores in Illinois and Wisconsin as part of the acquisition of Piggly Wiggly Midwest which includes 11 Piggly Wiggly corporate stores and 84 franchised stores in Wisconsin and 14 Butera Markets in the Chicago area. C&S also hired Mark McGowan, former president of Ahold Delhaize USA brand Stop & Shop, as its senior VP of retail, a new position. During 2021, the Keene, NH wholesaler experienced the loss of some of its business from its once largest customer Ahold Delhaize USA who announced in December 2019 that it would be shifting to a full self-distribution model to supply its Giant Food, The Giant Company and Stop & Shop brands, and would be leaving C&S (in phases) by 2023. Additionally, another big customer, Key Food Stores, announced late last year that it would be moving its wholesale business, which services about 320 independent retail stores mainly in the Metro New York area, to UNFI which recently opened a new distribution center in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania. That shift began in Q3 of this year. Earlier in 2021, C&S gained the frozen food business for the Albertsons Mid-Atlantic division (approximately 300 Acme and Safeway stores) after it acquired that contract from Burris Logistics which exited its long-standing relationship with Acme Markets that dated back to 1925. C&S also announced that it has agreed to acquire 12 former Tops stores in New York and Vermont that had to be divested in order for the FTC to authorize the Tops-Price Chopper merger which was announced in early 2021. C&S continues to serve as Tops’ primary supplier.
UNFI had a strong year in the region and remained the third largest wholesaler in the market, with an estimated volume of $10.5 billion in the Mid-Atlantic. The Providence, RI-based natural, organics, specialty food and conventional wholesaler named a new CEO in early August of 2021, bringing in former Coca-Cola executive Sandy Douglas to replace longtime chief executive Steve Spinner. In addition to adding Key Food to its independent roster and building a new 1 million square foot full-service DC in the Allentown, PA area, UNFI continued to supply some of the region’s largest independent groups – Redner’s, B. Green, Karns, Graul’s, McCaffrey’s and Western Beef.
Two of the largest national convenience store wholesalers – McLane and Core-Mark – dominated c-store distribution in the region. McLane’s 12 warehouses serving more than 6,000 stores (including many 7-Elevens) amassed estimated regional sales of $2.86 billion; and Core-Mark supplied more than 2,800 c-stores and amassed estimated annual wholesale sales of $2.1 billion.
Family-owned wholesale grocers, the genesis of virtually all grocery distribution, remained an important part of the landscape, despite tremendous industry consolidation and disruption.
Bozzuto’s, owned by the Bozzuto family, continued its tradition of strong customer service and innovation. The Cheshire, CT-based wholesaler serviced approximately 1,200 independent stores, many of which fly the IGA banner, and rang up wholesale sales of $2.5 billion in 2021.
Merchant Distributors, Inc. (MDI) remained the leading wholesaler in the Southeast, serving more than 700 stores (including Lowes Foods, the regional chain of nearly 100 stores that parent firm Alex Lee owns). Annual wholesale volume is estimated at $2.05 billion for the Hickory, NC-based firm which continues to add retailers as it expands further north into Pennsylvania.
Two metro New York based distributors – Krasdale (owned by the Krasne family) and General Trading (owned by the Abad family) – also enjoyed solid years.
Krasdale Foods, based in White Plains, NY (with a distribution center in the Bronx), supplied many independent retailers under such banners as AIM, Bravo, C-Town, Market Fresh, Shop Smart and Stop 1 – whose combined sales paced all independent retailers in the five boroughs of New York City. All told, the company serviced approximately 3,050 stores in the metro New York and Philadelphia markets and accrued estimated sales of $1.6 billion this year.
General Trading, based in Carlstadt, NJ, also serviced many independent merchants doing business in the areas in and surrounding New York City. Of the company’s nearly 3,500 stores it supplied, many were ethnic and specialty customers. Annual wholesale revenue is estimated to be $641 million.
Rounding out the list of leading wholesale companies in the region are the three club store merchants that operate stores nationally. We have broken out store counts and estimated sales for those units which operate in our coverage area. The nation’s largest club store operator – Costco –led the pack in the Mid-Atlantic with 78 stores and an estimated $6.5 billion in annual sales (extrapolated to include only food and related products). BJ’s Wholesale operated the most stores – 103 – which produced annual estimated extrapolated sales of $4.6 billion while Walmart-owned Sam’s Club’s 45 stores amassed $1.88 billion in estimated extrapolated volume this year.
