Kroger kicks off store closures after merger falls through

Grocery chain giant Kroger is in the process of shutting down underperforming stores across the country after its multibillion‑dollar merger with Albertsons collapsed under regulatory pressure.

In June, the company revealed that it would be shuttering around 60 stores across the U.S. over the next 18 months, and according to local media reports, several locations have now been marked for closure or closed down as part of this process.

Newsweek has contacted Kroger via email for comment.

Why It Matters

According to CBS in June, the closures would affect around five percent of the Cincinnati-based company’s roughly 1,200 stores.

What To Know

In June, Kroger announced plans to shutter approximately 60 U.S. locations, a move which it said resulted in a $100 million impairment charge in the first quarter but would yield a “modest financial benefit” for the company.

“Kroger is committed to reinvesting these savings back into the customer experience,” it said at the time, adding that roles would be offered in other locations “to all associates currently employed at affected stores.”

“We don’t take these decisions lightly, but this will make the company more efficient,” then-interim CEO Ron Sargent said at the time. Sargent said that the closures would be spread across the U.S. and target “underperforming” locations.

This followed weeks of labor disputes and the resignation of its CEO Rodney McMullen, and came months after the company’s attempted, $25-billion acquisition of rival Albertsons was blocked by district and state courts on anti-competition grounds.

In August, an analysis by Grocery Dive identified dozens of stores that had been marked for closure, and more recent reporting suggests the chain has begun shuttering several locations as part of this process. Kroger confirmed to El Adelantado that it was closing stores in Houston and Spring, Texas, both scheduled for April.

And while Kroger has not released a list of the doomed locations, MassLive in January analyzed several media reports of closures that had already impacted certain states, including in:

• California (1)
• Colorado (2)
• Georgia (4)
• Illinois (4)
• Indiana (3)
• Kentucky (1)
• Maryland (1)
• North Carolina (1)
• Tennessee (1)
• Texas (1),
• Virginia (5)
• West Virginia (1)
• Wisconsin (5)

In a memo obtained by Bloomberg in August, Kroger said that it would also be laying off 1,000 corporate employees as part of its wider push for efficiency.

“These decisions are never easy, but we know thoughtful, yet difficult, choices are necessary to set our organization up for continued success,” Sargent wrote in the memo.

What People Are Saying

Then-interim CEO Ron Sargent said during the June earnings call: “We see this as an opportunity to move these closed store sales to other stores and we think that should improve profitability. There’s really minimal financial impact on company results as a result of these store closures. The geography is spread really around the country.”

What Happens Next

As well as closing underperforming locations, Kroger said in June it had plans “accelerate new store openings in 2026 and beyond.”