Just read an article in the Durant newspaper saying Albertsons is seriously considering building a store there. They apparently have already had serious discussions with the city.

The article also said that Albertsons is actively looking for locations in Tulsa, OKC, Owasso, Lawton, Broken Arrow, Chickasha and Elk City..and a couple of other towns.

Anyone have any inside info on this?

Now that Albertsons owns Safeway, the United stores in Texas and Tom Thumb I guess it could be any one of the banners that come here if they decide to go forward.

Man, how many times does Albertson's have to come into Oklahoma and fail before they stop beating their heads on a wall?

I did hear they were a suitor for the Sprouts chain, which would then give them a presence back here. Who knows, perhaps the business market has changed in their view somehow. I was not aware they bought Safeway.

Man, how many times does Albertson's have to come into Oklahoma and fail before they stop beating their heads on a wall?

I did hear they were a suitor for the Sprouts chain, which would then give them a presence back here. Who knows, perhaps the business market has changed in their view somehow. I was not aware they bought Safeway.

See the Sprouts thread for discussion of Albertson's potential purchase of that chain:

http://www.okctalk.com/showthread.php?t=33803

The competition has only gotten more intense since they left. A lot more Walmart markets in the city.

This would be an actual Albertsons (or Tom Thumb or United)--not a Sprouts.

My understanding is that Albertsons is only considering Ardmore and smaller OK towns, not OKC or Tulsa.

My understanding is that Albertsons is only considering Ardmore and smaller OK towns, not OKC or Tulsa.

Interesting... Ardmore already has 5 grocery stores and two of those are never really very busy... Walmart, Homeland, and Aldi are always pretty busy.

Save-A-Lot has been there for a long time but I've never been in it and never see many cars there. it manages to stay in business though.

City Produce Company (a.k.a. Farmer's Market) has two locations in the area. One in Lone Grove and one downtown Ardmore but the one in Ardmore is so tucked away I'd bet even a lot of Ardmoreites don't know it's there.... They have an awesome butcher counter at both locations though.

If the Albertson's locations would be on par with the ones in DFW, I would be all for it and it would be very beneficial to the grocery market in OKC. However, if they neglect their stores like they did last time they were in this market, then they shouldn't even bother.

The competition has only gotten more intense since they left. A lot more Walmart markets in the city.

OKC has a lot of Wal-Mart shoppers who would shop elsewhere if there were more/better options. Traditional grocery stores compete with Wal-Mart everywhere so I don't see why they couldn't here. Albertson's would have to provide an overall superior product/experience to Wal-Mart however (which they didn't when they were in this market previously). I personally think they would do better here under the Tom Thumb banner than vanilla Albertson's.

They aren't coming to OKC.

OKC has a lot of Wal-Mart shoppers who would shop elsewhere if there were more/better options. Traditional grocery stores compete with Wal-Mart everywhere so I don't see why they couldn't here. Albertson's would have to provide an overall superior product/experience to Wal-Mart however (which they didn't when they were in this market previously). I personally think they would do better here under the Tom Thumb banner than vanilla Albertson's.

I agree that Tom Thumb would be a better brand to bring to Oklahoma. People have already made up their minds on the Albertson's brand and it hasn't been long enough to forget it.

Resurrecting this thread. A new 50,000 SF Albertsons broke ground last week off of 12th Street in Ardmore next to Academy Sports & Outdoors. This marks a return of Albertsons to Oklahoma after a 15 year departure. This store will be serviced out of the DFW region. Editorializing a bit, this store was definitely needed as Ardmore realistically only has three options of note in Walmart, Homeland, and Aldi.

https://www.kxii.com/2023/11/15/albertsons-location-break-ground-ardmore/

18476

I think that Kroger now own Albertsons.

The only reason why Albertsons is giving Oklahoma a second chance is because of Dallas-Fort Worth expansion

The only reason why Albertsons is giving Oklahoma a second chance is because of Dallas-Fort Worth expansion

Agreed. I think Durant would be a logical second Oklahoma expansion target due to its rapid growth (at least by non-metro standards).

You know Kroger bought Albertson's last month?

The transaction of Kroger buying Albertsons won’t close until next year.

Point being any expansion into OK would be in the Kroger name.

The transaction of Kroger buying Albertsons won’t close until next year.
Aren’t there questions whether it’ll be approved? I’m NOT a fan of the idea at all.

Unless they can leave their ridiculously high prices behind them, then they will fail again. Just like the string of other names they were known all failed....Alpha Beta, Skaggs, Skaggs Alpha Beta, Jewel Osco, Albertsons. You could spend $50 just walking through the door of that place. They did have some nice specialty items that you used to have a hard time finding around here, but of course that's not the case any longer. Maybe that's why they are only focusing on the smaller markets? Because they dont have those other options?

You know Kroger bought Albertson's last month?

Is part of the terms of the merger that the Albertsons name is going away? That's not what I've read. Curiously enough, this particular location in Ardmore was originally conceived as a Market Street under the United brand (also under Albertsons), hence the name of the shopping center. I suppose it could easily become a Kroger given that it will take about 12-16 months for construction.

Why did Kroger leave OK in the first place? I know they were here years ago but I don't understand why we're like the only state in the US without a national grocery brand, not counting Walmart.

Is part of the terms of the merger that the Albertsons name is going away? That's not what I've read. Curiously enough, this particular location in Ardmore was originally conceived as a Market Street under the United brand (also under Albertsons), hence the name of the shopping center. I suppose it could easily become a Kroger given that it will take about 12-16 months for construction.

Kroger is taking over Albertsons, they're already using the Kroger name on their OKC delivery service and they use the Kroger name in Dallas. They likely won't use the Albertson's name on new stores.

Kroger is taking over Albertsons, they're already using the Kroger name on their OKC delivery service and they use the Kroger name in Dallas. They likely won't use the Albertson's name on new stores.

Not necessarily. Kroger owns a bunch of other grocery store brands that still operate under their respected names. The "name" of the store will be the store size and what's offered. For example, in Wichita Kroger operates "Dillons" which look a lot like a Homeland, but in Joplin Kroger operates "Food 4 Less" which pricing and store interior look more like Winco.

Same for Albertson's they bought United Supermarkets in west Texas about a decade ago, those stores still operate under the United name.

Kroger is taking over Albertsons, they're already using the Kroger name on their OKC delivery service and they use the Kroger name in Dallas. They likely won't use the Albertson's name on new stores.

Albertsons is still operating stores in North Texas, including up by the Red River in Sherman and Denison. No reason to think this Ardmore store will be different. Of course, if the banner disappears entirely, then I assume they would all be converted over to Kroger.

https://www.winsightgrocerybusiness.com/kroger/decision-time-kroger-albertsons-merger-gets-closer

Decision time for possible merger.