Grocery chain Kroger is making good on its announcement that it will be closing 60 locations across the nation as some stores are already facing closure.
In June, Kroger announced that it planned to close 60 stores across the nation. While it did not provide a full list of stores or a specific timetable for the closures, it did note they would largely occur in the 18 months following the announcement. The store announced it would also layoff 1,000 employees along with the closures.
Kroger confirmed to the El Adelantado newspaper in Texas that it was closing locations in Houston and Spring. According to a spokesperson who talked to the publication, both of those stores are scheduled to close on April 10.
The paper also notes that at least three other Houston-area Kroger locations have shut down since the announcement.
The company said the closures represent a paring down of underperforming locations, and said more new stores would be opened in 2026.
“As a result of these closures, Kroger expects a modest financial benefit,” a company official said during a June earnings call announcing the shutdowns.
The 60 stores represent approximately 5 percent of the grocery chain's 1,239 stores.
Rudy DiPietro, President of Kroger's Texas Division, told the Houston Business Journal in the fall that the company will open "a bunch" of new stores in the Houston area over the next three to five years. He noted that the company's overall strategy going forward is to open new locations in areas that show strong potential for growth.
During its June earnings call, the company said it would open new locations in 2026 at an accelerate rate, expanding its 2025 new-store build rate by 30 percent.
While Kroger has not released a full list of stores slated for closure, MassLive compiled a partial list of states where Kroger stores were closing.
At least one store will be closing in California, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia. Colorado will lose at least two stores, Indiana will lose three, Illinois will lose 4, and both Virginia and Wisconsin will lose 5 stores, according to MassLive's analysis.
The closures were announced approximately six months after a proposed Kroger merger with the Albertsons grocery chain failed to materialize. In December, a pair of judges issued injunctions — one preliminary and one permanent — effectively killing the $24.6 billion agreement.
Judge Marshall Ferguson in Seattle issued the permanent injunction, ruling that the merger would lessen grocery competition in the state and violate consumer-protection laws.
If the merger had passed, it would have been the largest grocery store merger in U.S. history. The companies argued at the time that the merger was necessary to compete with entities like Walmart, Costco, and Amazon.
The Independent has requested comment from Kroger.
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