What Could The Kroger-Albertsons Merger Mean For Nacogdoches, Texas?

For a town the size of Nacogdoches, there are many places to get groceries. We have two Krogers, three Brookshire Brothers, La Michoacana, a Walmart Supercenter, and the little Walmart.

Those are just the major players and it doesn't even take into account all of the dollar stores, small meat markets, and other options around town. We can even drive to Lufkin and hit up their HEB or Sam's store without much effort.

Now according to the New York Times, Kroger and Albertsons are working on a 24.6 billion dollar merger. If (and that is a big if) the deal makes it through, what does that mean for our two small-town Kroger stores?

Kroger Attempting To Aquire Albertsons To Compete With Walmart

There used to be many mom-and-pop grocery stores all over Deep East Texas. I have a personal understanding of how these smaller players get squeezed out of a marketplace.

Boles Food Market played a pivotal role in my family's lives as my father worked there for decades. They had locations all over this area, all of which are now completely gone.

Kroger and Albertsons are far removed from that type of situation, but separately they do less than half the business of Walmart. Together they could get closer, but would still be around $10 billion short of Walmart’s profits.

The Only Change We Might See Are Lower Prices At Nacogdoches Kroger

If this heavily contested merger goes through, they won't put an Albertsons in Nacogdoches. The only change we might see would be a result of their group distribution and buying power translating into lower prices.

That would be a best-case scenario, as less competition is usually worse for the consumer in the long run. There wouldn't be anti-trust laws if that wasn't true.

The worst case would be our stores ending up in the 100-375 stores that could be divested to satisfy antitrust concerns. So far those plans are only directed at Albertsons.

Brookshire Brothers Closing North Timberland Drive Store In Lufkin

In other area grocery store news, Brookshire Brothers on 816 North Timberland has announced that they are closing the store for good on October 29th, 2022.

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The store was operated under a lease and will be returned to the landlord's control. The fuel station and tobacco barn at that location will stay in operation as Brookshire Brothers owns the land they sit on.

“We are sincerely grateful for our loyal customers who have supported the store, and we welcome them to continue to shop with us at our Chestnut and Frank Street locations,” said Brookshire Brothers President and CEO, John Alston. “In appreciation, everyone who shops at our North Timberland store between now and October 29, and spends at least twenty dollars per trip, will receive a one-time use coupon for up to $10 in savings on their next shopping trip. The coupon can be redeemed at either our Chestnut or Frank Street stores through November.”

They will be offering all of the employees at the North Timberland store other positions in the company.