Growing grocery chain eyes local Albertsons

The Albertsons store on Verdugo Avenue in Burbank is expected to be purchased by the newest grocery chain in the region — Haggen Food & Pharmacy, a relatively small Pacific Northwest chain that announced last month it had agreed to buy more than 140 grocery stores.

Haggen doesn’t currently have a presence outside Washington and Oregon, but the Burbank store is among 28 Los Angeles-area stores set to become a part of its brand, along with 118 more stores in California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona and Nevada. Those stores are currently Albertsons, Pavilions, Safeway and Vons locations.

The deal is part of an attempt by Albertsons and Safeway to shed more than 160 stores in order to gain federal approval for a merger. Aside from Haggen, Associated Wholesale Grocers/Minyards will acquire 12 stores in Texas, Associated Food Stores has agreed to buy eight locations in Montana and Wyoming, and Supervalu will purchase two stores in Washington.

The Federal Trade Commission, which ordered the sale, will need to approve the merger, as well as Haggen’s acquisition of 146 stores. Haggen officials said they expect the deal to close in late spring or early summer.

It’s a move that would allow Haggen to rapidly expand from its current 18 stores with 16 pharmacies into a large regional chain of 164 stores with 106 pharmacies. After the acquisition is completed, Haggen plans to phase in its brand at all of the acquired stores starting this year.

“We will have the opportunity to introduce many more customers to the Haggen experience,” said John Caple, chairman of the Haggen board of directors, in a prepared statement.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. According to the Los Angeles Times, some analysts estimated it to be around $1.4 billion to $2 billion.

Haggen was founded in 1933 in Bellingham, Wash., by Ben and Dorothy Haggen, with Dorothy’s brother Doug Clark. It has grown to become the sixth-largest private company in the state. Their son, Rick Haggen, is still involved with the company, which focuses on fresh, locally sourced food, though it is now majority-owned by the private investment firm Comvest Partners.

Bill Shaner will lead the division of 100 Haggen stores in California, Nevada and Arizona. He said the stores will operate in the region under the banner “Haggen Food & Pharmacy Since 1933.”

Haggen officials plan to keep the current Albertsons and Safeway employees and managers, according to a company statement, growing the chain from 2,000 employees to more than 10,000.

“It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Shaner said of the expansion. “One of the keys is the people in the stores.”

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Chad Garland, chad.garland@latimes.com

Twitter: @chadgarland