ST. LOUIS – Tuesday SuperValu announced it will be selling its grocery store chain Shop ‘n Save. The sale includes stores in the St. Louis region and on the east coast, stores branded Shop ‘n Save East.
Workers at the stores in the St. Louis region are represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union. Locals 655, 881 and 88 released the following statement after the sale announcement:
“Announcements impacting this many hard-working families are always concerning. It’s times like these that the men and women working for this company need their union family the most. Locals 655, 881 and 88 are committed to protecting the good union jobs at Shop ‘n Save. We will remain in close contact with Supervalu as well as any future employer to ensure the promise that unions make to all workers: a better life for them and their families.”
Competition has been heating up in the grocery business from online businesses and retail locations. For example, Amazon bought Whole Foods for $13.7 billion in August 2017.
Shop ’n Save, has 36 locations and has seen its market share slip over the last few years. Market research firm F&D Reports says the Shop ‘n Save slipped from 15.2 percent of the market in 2016 to 12.6 percent in 2018. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Schnuck Markets remains the top grocer in St. Louis with 29.2 percent of the market share.
