Inflation was the single biggest factor that propelled virtually every retailer in all trade channels to record or near record sales. However, a shift is looming as merchants have begun to experience flat or slightly negative comp store revenue. In fact, total retail sales in the 70-county area covering Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, increased from $111.8 billion to $118.4 billion over the 12-month measuring period, the second highest rate since Food Trade News has published its annual sales and share of market breakouts in 1978 (only 2020’s inflation rate was higher).
[Read the complete 2023 Food Trade News Market Study issue with full data.]
Here’s a breakdown of the top 10 retailers in the Mid-Atlantic market:
For the 38th consecutive year, ShopRite and its sister banners (Price Rite, Fresh Grocer, Gourmet Garage, Dearborn Market and Fairway Market) continued to dominate the landscape in the overall marketing area. As for the numbers, ShopRite and (parent company) Wakefern’s other banners operated 293 stores in the region and rang up estimated annual retail sales of $18.1 billion. A large amount of that store growth came last June when 10-store Gerrity’s (Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area) became a member of Wakefern. Those stores now trade under the Fresh Grocer banner.
Given the overall revenue acceleration created by inflation, Stop & Shop had another challenging year. While annual overall sales increased to an estimated $8.18 billion (from $7.97 billion last year), comp store sales were below average when compared to other food retailers in the region, The largest Ahold Delhaize USA (ADUSA) brand operated five fewer supermarkets this year (204 vs. 209).
Conversely, another ADUSA brand – The Giant Company (TGC) – continued its positive roll that began years before COVID. The Carlisle, PA-based supermarket chain opened three new stores over the past 12 months, new supermarkets in Richboro, PA; Philadelphia, PA – N. Broad & Spring Garden; and Benner, Twp., PA. Annual sales are projected to be $7.44 billion at its 161 stores.
Maintaining its fourth-place slot, CVS also retained its leadership among drug chains in the market. However, unlike like rivals Walgreens and Rite Aid, the Woonsocket, RI-based drug chain actually opened a new drug store in the 70-county region. Now operating 1,240 drug stores, CVS amassed estimated annual sales of $6.94 billion.
Remaining in fifth place among retailers in the region was Walmart, which again did not open any new brick-and-mortar stores (in fact, it closed a discount unit in Guilford, CT), but managed to achieve one of the best comp store sales increases in the entire market. The Bentonville, AR-based mass merchant once again focused primarily on upgrading its e-commerce initiatives. Annual extrapolated food and drug sales for its 173 stores in the region are estimated at $6.45 billion.
Costco again enjoyed one of the finest years of any retailer in the market with nearly double-digit comp store increases as well as gains in traffic counts and average ring. The Issaquah, WA-based club merchant now operates 50 stores in the region, good for estimated annual extrapolated sales of $5.32 billion. Its strong effort moved the club retailer into sixth place among all retailers.
Walgreens, like Rite Aid, continued to close drug stores over the past 12 months. Both retailers also settled multimillion opioid-related lawsuits. The Deerfield, IL-based division of Walgreens Boots Alliance now operates 717 stores in the market (24 fewer than last year) that produced estimated annual sales of $5.11 billion.
It was another solid year for the Mid-Atlantic division of Albertsons whose banners include Acme, Safeway, Kings and Balducci’s. While the Malvern, PA-based division operated the same number of stores as last year (179), it continued to offer its customers some of the best in-stock conditions of any retailer in the market. It was that level of execution which helped the retailer generate improved comps over a very healthy 2021. Sales grew from $4.6 billion in 2021 to $4.83 billion this year. The Mid-Atlantic division of Albertsons continued to operate 179 units in the region and had a solid year when measuring same-store sales. In October 2022, Albertsons and Kroger announced they have agreed to merge, although approval or rejection of the nearly $25 billion deal is still about a year away.
Ranking ninth in the region was Target, which now operates 180 units (five more than last year), The company also runs more than 25 smaller urban models primarily in New York City and Philadelphia. Target also benefited handsomely from food price inflation although sales in other categories – apparel, electronics, home goods were flat. During the past 12 months, the Minneapolis-based mass merchant rang up estimated extrapolated food sales of $4.63 billion.
Cracking the top 10 for the first time was Wawa, which achieved one of the best sales gains in the entire survey. The Wawa, PA based c-store merchant now operates 564 stores in the $118.4 billion region (20 more than last year) including its 1,000th corporate store which opened in April in Oaklyn, NJ. Sales at Wawa’s units were $4.1 billion.
Other retailers that surpassed the $1 billion sales mark were Krasdale, which supplies 497 independent stores and amassed sales of $4.09 billion; BJ’s (80 stores with extrapolated annual sales of $3.99 billion); Key Food, which oversees 320 independent supermarkets and $3.78 billion in annual sales; Whole Foods, including Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go (77 units good for estimated annual sales of $2.94 billion); Weis Markets (111 stores, annual sales of $2.73 billion; 7-Eleven (980 c-stores, estimated annual volume $2.59 billion); beleaguered Rite Aid (592 stores, estimated annual volume of $2.58 billion); ASG, which supervises 281 independent supermarkets with sales of $2.44 billion; Wegmans (28 stores whose estimated annual revenue was $2.06 billion); Aldi (183 discount units whose estimated annual sales reached $1.74 billion); Trader Joe’s (60 stores, estimated annual volume of $1.72 billion); Allegiance Retail Services (125 stores with annual sales of $1.5 billion); and Sam’s Club (24 stores, estimated extrapolated annual sales $1.12 billion).
By class of trade, the leaders are: supermarkets – ShopRite/Price Rite/Fresh Grocer et al (293 stores, $18.07 billion in estimated annual retail sales); clubs – Costco (50 stores, $5.32 billion in estimated extrapolated annual sales); mass – Walmart (173 stores, $6.45 billion in estimated extrapolated annual sales); drug – CVS (1,240 stores and $6.94 billion in estimated annual sales); and convenience stores – Wawa (564 stores and $4.1 billion in annual revenue).
Viewed as a group, the 72 chains and independents operating in the grocery, club, mass, drug and c-store channels operated 8,756 stores and accrued $116.3 billion in annual sales in the Food Trade News marketing region, good for 98.22 percent of the region’s $118.4 billion food and drug market.
Major news stories over the past year included the proposed Kroger-Albertson merger; the first unionization at an Amazon fulfillment center (in Staten Island); the resignation of Nicholas Bertram as president of The Giant Company (he was replaced on an interim bases by veteran TGC executive John Ruane); the appointment of Leon Bergmann as CEO of troubled discounter Save A Lot; the halting of future Amazon Fresh stores (more than 30 locations are still under lease); the housecleaning of senior management at Dollar Tree Stores Family Dollar; the transfer of Albertsons’ Mid-Atlantic president (and company EVP) Jim Perkins to corporate headquarters in Boise, ID to run potential merger spinoff SpinCo (Tom Lofland was named president); and the naming of Cub Foods/UNFI executive Mike Stigers as Wakefern’s president who this month replaced Joe Sheridan, who was with the largest wholesale food-coop in the country for 48-years, the last 12 as the Keasbey, NJ firm’s day-today leader.