There are regions of the US where unemployment is going down. These national statistics aren’t reflecting a true picture...just a national picture.
As for Food Lion...they had a business situation where they simply couldn’t compete. If you run an upscale grocery shop in a depressed area...you’ve got a year of games that you can play, but you really need business to start picking up after two years. Food Lion simply wasn’t seeing an improvement.
Such regions are free from the chokehold of union thuggery. Right to work means true liberty for both employer and employee, free from the extortion racket run by Big Labor goons.
Food Lion was upscale?
I wouldn’t call Food Lion upscale at all. Their newest stores have more variety and a more appealing design and layout, but they’re really in the neighborhood of Aldi as far as price and market perception.
Food Lion is upscale? Not when I lived in Virginia. Maybe the Florida Food Lions are different.