When it comes to picking a grocery store, location matters.
“The share of men who preferred to shop in a grocery store because of its location was 47.5% — nearly 6 percentage points higher than the corresponding share of women (41.9%),” according to a report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
But while location matters, it’s not the only factor that goes into picking a grocery store.
“Store proximity may be important, but price, quality, and selection also affect where households shop. In addition, households may food shop on their way home from work or other activities,” according to a different USDA study.
When a grocery store closes, however, people lose choice, and that can be devastating to a community.
“Without access to healthy foods, a nutritious diet and good health are out of reach. And without grocery stores and other fresh food retailers, communities are also missing the
commercial vitality that makes neighborhoods livable and helps local economies thrive,” according to The Food Trust.
Kroger, the largest traditional grocery chain in the country, has been closing locations and continues to shut down underperforming stores.
Traditional supermarkets no longer dominate
Big box retail stores have dominated the grocery sector in recent years, with Walmart, Costco, and Target capturing about 37% of the combined U.S. market share in 2026, according to market research firm Xwiz Analytics.
Walmart is the top grocery retailer in the U.S., capturing about 23.6% of the market with over 5,200 stores and about $276 billion in revenue, followed by Kroger, which holds 10.1% of the market with over 2,700 stores and $147 billion in revenue.
That puts pricing pressure on traditional grocery chains because many struggle to consistently match Walmart, Costco, and Amazon on everyday prices. That’s something Kroger CEO Gregory Foran admits, but he also has a plan to be competitive without being the cheapest.
“We do not need to be the lowest-priced retailer. We need to be more competitive, more consistent, and easier for customers to understand,” he said during the company’s first-quarter earnings call.
More Retail:
- Coca-Cola quietly hints at reinventing previously failed flavor
- Bath & Body Works quietly gains a competitive advantage
- Dollar General brings back old prices
He believes that Kroger can deliver an experience that wins customers even when its overall pricing is higher.
“When a customer is deciding where to shop, we want more of them choosing Kroger more often because the value is clear, the experience is great, and the trust is there,” he added.
Grocery chains face a real challenge
For Kroger to lower prices, it has to cut expenses. That’s something Foran believes his company can achieve.
“Every dollar we invest in customer value we earn through cost savings and efficiency. That’s the standard we’re holding ourselves to,” he said.
The challenge is that Costco, Walmart, and Amazon can make money on non-grocery items, and in the warehouse club‘s case, on membership fees.
“Grocery always has been a business with slim profit margins,” Barbara Kahn, a marketing professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, told Patch.
Given the economic strains, “the ones on the margins won’t make it,” she said.
Traditional grocery stores, she noted, have to change how they operate.
“By looking to see what the competition is doing and doing better than the competition, you can draw a buzz,” she said. “What you can’t do is keep doing what you’re doing, which is particularly true in groceries because the margins are so slim.”
Some Kroger locations simply won’t make it because of location, competition, and other factors the company can’t control.
Kroger, however, does have some things working in its favor, according to RTM Nexus CEO Dominick Miserandino.
“Brand is a huge piece of this, but you have to understand what ‘brand’ actually means in grocery,” he told TheStreet. “Walmart’s brand is cheap. Costco’s brand is bulk trust. Kroger’s brand is convenience and reliability — it’s the store five minutes from your house where the produce is fresh, the aisles are familiar, and you’re in and out.”
Price, he noted, is not the only factor shoppers consider.
“Throw in house brands like Simple Truth and Private Selection that people actually like, and Kroger gives you a reason to shop there that goes way beyond fighting over who has the cheapest loaf of bread. You don’t need to be the flashiest giant on the block — you just need to be the easiest, most reliable choice in your own neighborhood,” he added.
Shutterstock
Kroger closing 60 stores
Kroger operates stores under its name as well as under the Fred Meyer, Fry’s Food and Drug, Harris Teeter, Jay C, King Soopers, Mariano’s, Pick ’n Save, and QFC banners.
Kroger Chairman Ron Sargent shared the decision to close select stores during the company’s first-quarter 2025 earnings call.
“As I mentioned earlier, we’re simplifying our business and reviewing areas that will not be meaningful to our future growth. Unfortunately, today, not all of our stores are delivering the sustainable results we need,” he said.
Because of that, Kroger shared plans to shut down select locations, but did not name the stores it planned to close.
“To position our company for future success this morning, we announced plans to close approximately 60 stores over the next 18 months. We don’t take these decisions lightly, but this will make the company more efficient, and Kroger will offer roles in other stores to all associates currently employed at affected stores,” he added.
Kroger’s Saregent said it delayed its normal review of underperforming stores while pursuing the Albertsons merger, leading to a larger round of closures afterward.
“Instead of popping champagne and toasting to their merger, Kroger is instead just enduring one hit after another,” Jeff Wells, lead editor at the trade publication Grocery Dive told the Los Angeles Times. “They’re still a pretty stable business, but they’re facing a lot in terms of challenges.”
Kroger has never released a list of closing stores, but about half of the planned shutdowns have already taken place.
These are the closing Kroger locations
Inc. compiled a list of Kroger locations that have closed or are set to close.
California
- 19200 Soledad Canyon Road, Santa Clarita, CA 91351 (Food 4 Less; will reopen as Ralphs)
- 8122 Gerber Road, Sacramento, CA 95828 (FoodsCo)
Georgia
- 2452 Morosgo Way NE, Atlanta, GA 30324
- 3855 Buford Highway NE, Brookhaven, GA 30329
- 3479 Memorial Drive, Decatur, GA 30032
- 11877 Douglas Road, Alpharetta, GA 30005
Illinois
- 3311 N Sterling Avenue, Peoria, IL 61604
Indiana
- 4526 W Western Avenue, South Bend, IN 46619
- 901 Johnson Street, Elkhart, IN 46514
Kentucky
- 4211 S 3rd Street, Louisville, KY 40214
Louisiana
- 4100 Barksdale Boulevard, Bossier City, LA 71112
New Mexico
- 2308 Cerrillos Road, Santa Fe, NM 87505 (Smith’s)
North Carolina
- 5706 Wyalong Drive, Charlotte, NC 28227 (Harris Teeter)
Tennessee
- 1664 E Stone Drive, Kingsport, TN 37660
Texas
- 2901 Lake Forest Drive, McKinney, TX (a new store is planned to replace this location)
- 239 W 20th Street, Houston, TX 77008
- 6060 Farm to Market 2920, Spring, TX 77379
- 9325 Katy Freeway, Houston, TX 77024
- 2300 Gessner Road, Houston, TX 77080
Virginia
- 1904 Emmet Street N, Charlottesville, VA 22901
- 466 Cummings Street, Abingdon, VA 24210
West Virginia
- 5 River Walk Mall, South Charleston, WV 25303 (will consolidate into a new Kroger Marketplace)
- 981 Dunbar Village, Dunbar, WV 25064 (will consolidate into a new Kroger Marketplace)
- 2908 State Street, Gassaway, WV 26624
Related: Costco’s changes fix members’ biggest problems