BELLINGHAM — Haggen Food &Pharmacy is now exploring whether to sell all of its stores.
The Bellingham-based grocer has asked for court approval to allow an auction even of its “core stores” — the 37 successful Northwest stores around which the bankrupt company had previously planned to reorganize. The auction would be Jan. 8. A sale hearing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware would be held Jan. 15.
Haggen needs court approval for the auction since it filed for bankruptcy on Sept. 8 and is operating with financing from creditors.
A company spokeswoman said this is part of the bankruptcy process.
“As part of the restructuring process, Haggen was required to explore potential outside opportunities for all of its operations, including the core stores which are performing well,” said a company spokeswoman in an email. “The bid procedures filed today comply with those terms. Despite the filing, Haggen does not anticipate any changes to continuing operations at the core stores including regular payments to suppliers and partners.”
The spokeswoman declined to explain further or clarify whether this means the company plans to stay in the grocery business.
The grocer closed 27 stores this fall. This week, Haggen is auctioning 100 stores from a second phase of store closures. Haggen has seven locations in Snohomish County — in Everett, Marysville, Monroe, Lake Stevens, Snohomish, Clearview and Stanwood — and has said it will close the ones in Everett and Monroe.
Haggen purchased 146 stores from Albertsons and Safeway earlier this year when those two chains merged. Haggen grew from 18 locations with 2,000 employees in the Northwest to 164 stores with more than 10,000 employees across the West Coast. But problems quickly popped up and, by this summer, the chain had filed bankruptcy.
As Haggen looks to shed many of its stores, Albertsons has come to take its locations back.
Albertsons is now the baseline bidder for 36 of the stores that went to auction Monday. The large chain is bidding on stores in Washington, Oregon and Arizona. Many of the stores for sale were purchased from Albertsons and Safeway in December.
Albertsons was forced to sell the stores last year by the Federal Trade Commission when it merged with Safeway.
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