A prominent southern grocery store chain is shuttering some of its locations due to poor financial performance as the industry faces growing challenges with rising competition, increased costs and shifting consumer preferences.
Homeland Acquisition Corp. (HAC) Inc., which has a significant presence in Oklahoma, Texas and Georgia, confirmed to FOX Business that it is closing four locations under the Homeland, United Supermarkets and Discount Foods banners in Oklahoma. The stores are slated to close by Aug. 16.
One of its Piggly Wiggly locations in Gordon, Georgia, is also slated to close, according to the Daily Mail.
HAC Inc., headquartered in Oklahoma City, operates 80 grocery stores under several well-known banners, including Food World, Piggly Wiggly, United, CashSaver and Homeland.
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Homeland is the company’s largest banner and largest locally owned grocery store chain in Oklahoma, with 36 locations across the state.
Christin King, director of marketing and public relations for Homeland, told The Oklahoman that the stores’ financial performance was the driver behind the decision.
“By closing these stores, we are able to focus on the greatest opportunities that strengthen other communities, grow communities and to really strengthen our organization by focusing resources in those areas,” King said.
The closures come as conventional supermarkets have been losing ground for years, particularly to mass merchandisers, club stores, discounters and specialty grocers, according to Arun Sundaram, vice president and senior equity analyst at CFRA Research.
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“High inflation, shifting consumer habits, increased competition, and new entrants are some of the reasons why the competitive landscape has changed,” Sundaram told FOX Business.
That’s one of the reasons why the two supermarket giants, Kroger and Albertsons, tried to merge, according to Sundaram, noting that a combined entity would make a more formidable competitor to companies like Walmart, Costco and Amazon.
A federal judge blocked the proposed $25 billion merger in December 2024, agreeing with the Federal Trade Commission that the deal would undermine competition in the grocery industry.
Since the merger is off, even Kroger and Albertsons “are playing catch-up on store closures, which had been paused during the merger process,” Sundaram said.
For instance, Kroger announced in its first-quarter 2025 earnings report last month that it was closing 60 stores over the coming year in an effort to make the company “more efficient.”
However, Kroger and Albertsons are still opening new stores in faster-growing markets, he added.
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