Posted on 08/13/2026 4:37:09 AM PDT by Red Badger
Your local Kroger may be in danger of closing.
A new report has revealed 39 Kroger supermarket stores some of which are identified under a different banner have closed its doors.
The closings won’t end there though.
Dozens more are set to close its doors by the end of 2026.
Fox Business was the first to break the story and provided insight on what led Kroger to make the tough call:
Kroger has closed at least three dozen stores since announcing plans last year to shutter 60 locations that were not “delivering sustainable results” by the end of 2026.
The Cincinnati-based grocery giant did not release a full list of stores or banners slated for closure, but online searches listed 39 locations across nine banners as no longer operating. Local reports also confirmed that many of the locations were part of the broader store overhaul.
As of January 2026, Kroger operated 2,697 supermarkets across 35 states under roughly 20 banners, including
Fred Meyer,
Fry’s Food and Drug,
Harris Teeter,
Jay C,
King Soopers,
Mariano’s,
Pick ’n Save,
QFC,
Ralphs,
according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
The company said the closures are intended to help it “run more efficiently and ensure the long-term health of our business,” according to FOX 26 Houston, which reported that two Houston-area locations were slated to close in April.
The closures come as Kroger announced plans last month to acquire regional grocery chain Giant Eagle for $1.65 billion, which would add another 197 supermarkets and 11 standalone pharmacies across northern Ohio, western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and Indiana.
Kroger in recent years has seemed more interested in selling shopper’s data than keeping their stores open.
WKYC reported more on Kroger cashing on its customer’s data:
Grocery store loyalty programs offer customers digital coupons, fuel discounts and product recall notifications in exchange for membership. However, a Consumer Reports investigation has found that Kroger, one of the nation’s largest grocery chains, collects and monetizes shopper data on a scale that exceeds typical retail practices.
According to the investigation, retail loyalty programs typically require customers to provide their name, home address, email address and phone number during signup. Store chains then track purchasing patterns to build customer profiles. While this practice is common across the industry, Consumer Reports found that Kroger has developed what it characterizes as a sophisticated data collection and analysis operation.
“Store chains often collect your name, home address, email address, and phone number. Then study what’s in your grocery cart. Many retailers do this, but Kroger, one of the largest grocery chains in the U.S., is doing it in a much bigger, profitable way,” said Derek Kravitz, an investigative reporter with Consumer Reports.
The investigation found that Kroger uses collected data both internally and sells it to third parties for targeted marketing purposes. The company’s precision marketing division generated an estimated $527 million last year. These alternative profit ventures now account for more than 35% of Kroger’s net income, according to Consumer Reports.
Watch Senator Josh Hawley expose Kroger:
VIDEO AT LINK..........
“High crime” isn’t the only reason stores like Kroger are closing. Supermarkets like Kroger are following the path of department stores like Sears and JC Penny. They started as the “come one come all” stores that catered to everyone and still are. The market has changed. High end stores like Publix and Whole Foods are picking off wealthy customers. Amazon and online delivery services are cutting into market share for younger and urban shoppers. The shopper who gets up on a Saturday morning and goes to Kroger or Giant to do their weekly shopping for the family is a vanishing customer and increasingly older.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Thumb_(grocery_store)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EG_Group#United_States
You’re welcome! So, you’re in Oklahoma now?
My observations too. About a dozen years ago Kroger acquired a western regional chain called Fred Meyer’s. It was a very good place to buy groceries, clothing, lawn & garden products and a nice selection of furniture.
The employees were happy and exceptionally friendly and helpful. The stores were spotless and the products were abundant.
Then came the Kroger acquisition and almost immediately the managerial staff purges commenced and the stores became dirty and long time products disappeared from the shelves. The stores are shadows of their previous self.
Kroger is a terrible corporate entity.
Kroger does not own any Tom Thumbs, from my review. The specific “convenience store” form is owned by a firm out of England, “EG America” (Florida and Alabama are apparently is where most are). The “grocery store” big supermarket is owned by Albertson’s.
The version getting name changed is the UK convenience store brand.
I come from a strong “Kroger” area, so this was a chance to better understand.
The Fred Meyer store I Couer d’Alene, ID is outstanding. Well stocked, huge, great selections, lots of checkers, short lines, very easy to find a helpful person, clean, well lit, convenient location, great meat and fish department. It’s got a terrific clothing department and a very good garden center. We used to take my uncle shopping at the Fred Meyer in Twin Falls when he got up in years and it was the same there 15-30 years ago.
Those are probably in Mau Mau territory.
I’m sure here in North Texas HEB is crushing Kroger.
The Kroger that closed in my area was in a s**t-hole part of town and wasn’t kept up very well. The other Krogers are newer/nicer and in safer places.
See posts 39 and 42........
Pick ’n Save
1735 W Silver Spring Dr., Glendale, WI 53209
3701 S 27th St., Milwaukee, WI 53221
2355 N 35th St., Milwaukee, WI 53210
2320 W Ryan Rd., Oak Creek, WI 53154
2931 S. Chicago Ave., South Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53172
All higher than average crime areas in Wisconsin.
“The closures come as Kroger announced plans last month to acquire regional grocery chain Giant Eagle for $1.65 billion, which would add another 197 supermarkets and 11 standalone pharmacies across northern Ohio, western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and Indiana.”
They’re closing a bunch of stores, but opening up a bunch more, plus additional pharmacies which an AGING POPULATION desperately needs.
I have 18 years of Retail Management behind me, and grocery stores have the smallest margins of any kind of retail outfits. This article makes them sound as if they’re EVIL, but it’s just business.
Also - if cities would clean up their higher crime areas, businesses wouldn’t move out. Not a good way to run your city, if you ask me.
Most are closing in hood areas where theft is a major problem.
Maybe the Left wants them ALL GONE, so they can open up ManDummy’s Government run stores............
Yes, in OK since 1972 when my dad’s job transferred him. I went to college here, left for 3 years in West Germany for Army service, returned for civilian life.
Foreigners wouldn’t buy the company? Ahold, Aldi, Sainsbury.
Harris Teeter is the best run operation and quality grocery chain in the US. Try them sometime if you can. Training is important to them.
Oklahoma is certainly a geologically diverse state with many beautiful places. Very underrated. Thanks for sharing!
I live in a flyover metro area with big box grocery stores and a regional grocery store chain. We have a stand alone grocery store open a few years ago. It wildly popular. It has a coffee bar and a grill to cook omelets, burgers and etc. It also has freshly cooked food that you can be eaten at the store or taken home.
Whenever possible I register my dog as the customer.
Let the data miners chew on that.
Lol.
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