Nationally, grocers are finding sale-leasebacks profitable. By selling valuable real estate holding a supermarket, they can bring in extra cash, then secure a long-term lease for the property. But in New York City, where real estate is notoriously expensive and competitive, one chain is doing the opposite. Queens, NY-based Food Bazaar has just completed its most expensive property acquisition, paying $101 million for the site of its 75,000 square foot Long Island City supermarket and its parking lot. This comes months after longtime vice president Edward Suh has taken over as president of the 38-unit chain.
Suh became president of Bogopa Enterprises, the parent company of Food Bazaar, last fall. He replaced Spencer An, who’d served as president for more than 10 years and whose father founded the chain in 1988. An and his family still own the majority of the company. And while the Long Island City transaction is the highest-profile yet, it’s also the latest in a string of acquisitions for Bogopa, which owns several of its sites in New York City, New Jersey, and Connecticut.
Bogopa has partnered with developer Shorewood Real Estate Group for the Long Island City purchase along with several others. A Brooklyn store was demolished in 2021 and reopened two years later with apartments above it that Shorewood built, and properties with similar arrangements are now under construction in Queens and the Bronx. Another was recently approved for Newark, New Jersey. While neither company has publicly discussed plans for the Long Island City site, it’s possible a mixed-use development could soon arrive there.
Bogopa has also recently acquired the former Volvo North America headquarters in Rockleigh, New Jersey, which has since been rebuilt into a 150,000 square foot automated distribution center. Bogopa still utilizes Bozzuto’s as their primary distributor. As Bogopa looks to acquire more properties while expanding its own distribution capabilities, the focus here is essentially vertical integration. Fluctuations in New York City real estate values — common in the volatile and expensive metro area — can mean the difference between a profitable supermarket and a closure. By overseeing their own real estate, retail, and distribution, Bogopa is working towards a more predictable and more controlled operation.
