Will Martin’s signal sour end for wine shops?

The Ukrop’s next to Matthew Lake’s wine store will soon become a Martin’s Grocery store and do what would have seemed inconceivable a year ago: sell beer and wine.

And that presents a formerly unfathomable challenge for the wine stores that for decades operated symbiotically with Ukrop’s in the same shopping centers. But local wine stores aren’t giving in just yet.

Wine & Beer Westpark on West Broad Street has been a wine and beer specialty store beside Ukrop’s for 25 years. Read more

Local firms hired to help Ukrop’s morph into Martin’s

The 25 Ukrop’s stores purchased by Dutch grocer Ahold will be closed for a week for facelifts and a spring cleaning before becoming Martin’s grocery stores.

Martin’s announced Tuesday that each store would be closed for up to a week. Local companies are doing most of the work, the company said.

Renovations will include upgrades to the refrigeration units to accommodate the new beer and wine sections, as well as new lighting, signage and fresh paint. Another big change from the Ukrop’s tradition: When they reopen, they will be open on Sundays. And the cafes will have wireless internet access and new chairs and tables.
Read more

Ukrop’s buyer keeps coffee roaster counting beans

The sale of Ukrop’s has brought a lot of changes to Richmond area businesses.

Girl Scout cookies won’t be for sale outside the store, and Supervalu recently announced it was cutting 80 jobs because the new owner is using different suppliers.

But for at least one local business, it’s pretty much business as usual when it comes to its relationship with the grocery chain. Read more

Top 10 business news events of 2009

Good riddance, 2009.

Companies that have been around for decades dropped like flies. RIP S&K Menswear, Circuit City, LandAmerica and Roper Lumber. It’s also time to start saying our goodbyes to Ukrop’s, although the stores won’t be changing over just yet.

But there were some more uplifting moments, and some funny ones, too. Plus, tough times are instructional.

We tallied the Top 10 biggest moments in business, and there is some painful medicine there. But there’s lots of reasons for encouragement – some of which we’ll be getting to in tomorrow’s Top 10 trends to watch.
Read more

Ukrop’s to sell 25 stores for $140 million

After more than 72 years, the Ukrop’s family is out of the retail grocery business.

Royal Ahold, the Dutch supermarket operator that owns the Giant chain of grocery stores, will buy 25 stores from Ukrop’s Super Markets for $140 million. The deal is expected to close during the first quarter of 2010.

Its subsidiary Giant-Carlisle operates more than 150 stores in the Mid-Atlantic, including some that operate under the Martin’s brand name.

Ukrop’s CEO Bobby Ukrop, joined by his brother Jim, announced the news at a press conference Thursday afternoon. The local grocery chain was founded in 1937 by their father Joseph.

“They are a lot like us. They have similar values and a similar culture,” said Bobby Ukrop.

Giant-Carlisle’s origins go back to 1923 when it was founded as the Carlisle Meat Market in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. It was sold to Royal Ahold in 1981.

Ukrop said the stores will continue to operate under the same name for the short-term as the new owners take time to study the business and plan gradual changes.

Not included in the deal are the Fredericksburg store and the Joe’s Market owned by Ukrop’s located in Richmond’s West End. Those stores will eventually be closed.  The nearest Giant Food Stores are in Charlottesville and Fredericksburg.

While the family is leaving the retail business, Ukrop said the Ukrop’s Food Group will continue as a food producer and bakery, with Giant-Carlisle a primary customer. First Market Bank will also continue to operate branches at the store.

Jim Ukrop, who served as CEO of the supermarket before his brother, said one reason the family decided to sell is because it found itself at a competitive disadvantage.

“Our size limited our ability to succeed in today’s increasingly competitive grocery market,” he said.

According to a required filing with the Office of Thrift Supervision related to First Market Bank, the grocery store lost $1.4 million in the third quarter of this year, earning a total income of $140 million.

The company’s total assets as of September 30 were listed as $233 million, with liabilities of $145.9 million.

The elder Ukrop addressed the notion that even if they had begun selling alcohol and keeping Sunday hours, it would only have bought the business a few more years before it found itself in a similar position.

Rick Herring, the division president of Giant-Carlisle, said that over the next few months the company would be making decisions as to whether the stores will open on Sundays or sell beer and wine over the next few months, and not until then.

“We look forward to building on the heritage of this great company, I’d say in Richmond it is more of an institution,” Herring said.

Current retail associates will be rehired, he said.

“Our goal is to remain an employer of choice,” said Herring.

Flat is the new up

Local businesses and big-box retailers aren’t increasing seasonal hiring – and in some cases, they’re cutting back.

The reason: Analysts expect retail sales across the nation to drop for a second consecutive year.

“We anticipate we are hiring less than last year,” said Target Corp. spokesperson Kyle Thompson. Instead of hiring more seasonal helpers, Target is allowing its current employees to earn extra pay this holiday season by undergoing cross-training and working additional shifts, taking on different responsibilities as needed. Read more

Kroger ups ante in grocery fight

There’s a food fight brewing in Carytown, where Kroger is about to make a not-so-subtle push to lure customers from the Ukrop’s across the street.

The chain has new carts for bag boys to use when they shuttle customers’ bundles to their cars. Read more

Ukrop’s sale speculation getting more solid

The rumors are probably true.

Ukrop’s has been shopping around its chain of grocery stores, according to several sources close to the family who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

But the current recession is lowering the price potential acquirers are willing to pay, and that could put the kibosh on a deal. Read more

Union Bankshares to sell $62.5 million in stock

Bowling Green-based Union Bankshares announced Tuesday that it intends to sell $62.5 million in new stock.

Union Bankshares is the holding company of Union Bank and Trust, and has a pending merger agreement to acquire Richmond-based First Market Bank for 7.5 million shares of common stock.

“We want to put ourselves in a position to support future growth and the dislocation of customers that will come from some of the large banks to the combined Union Bank and First Market entity,” said G. William Beale, president and CEO of Union Bankshares. Read more

Who’s leaking news about Ukrop’s?

Where’s the mole?

Ukrop’s is again in the headlines for a possible sale. And like last time, it’s because a grocery industry website ran a blurb about a possible sale.

Supermaket News reported Tuesday that “Harris Teeter was outbid for Ukrop’s by an unnamed private equity group, which is currently in exclusive negotiations to acquire Ukrop’s.” Read more

Next Page »