EVERETT — After more than 26 years in business, the Everett Top Food & Drug store will close next month, the company announced Friday.
“This is a decision we reluctantly make because of its impact on our employees and customers,” said Becky Skaggs, spokeswoman for Top Food &
Drug stores. “In this highly competitive and difficult retail environment, the closure of under performing stores allows our company and our supplier partners to focus on long-term growth.”
Owned by Haggen, Inc., the Top store located at 1605 S.E. Everett Mall Way employs 50 people. The company will try to place those employees at its other Top Food or Haggen Food stores when the Everett store closes in mid-February.
Haggen Inc. also plans to close a Top grocery store in Beaverton, Ore., Skaggs said. The company closed its Redmond store last year.
The Everett store closure emphasizes the competitive nature of the grocery industry.
Earlier this week, investment firms downgraded major grocery store chains, including Safeway and Supervalu, the parent company of Albertsons. Food prices are expected to rise in 2011 despite a still high unemployment rate. And traditional grocery stores are also seeing more competition from large retailers such as Wal-Mart and Target, analysts said.
“We believe food inflation could hurt grocer results either through margin shortfalls or demand declines,” Mark Wiltamuth, an analyst with Morgan Stanley, wrote in his report on investors.
Also this week, Albertsons announced plans to close its Ellensburg and Puyallup stores as well as four California locations.
Top’s Skaggs declined to comment on specific competition. However, several other grocery stores in south Everett compete with the Top Food location. Late last year, WinCo opened up its second store in Snohomish County near Silver Lake, which is a little more a mile from Top Foods. Trader Joes and Grocery Outlet also have locations on Everett Mall Way.
Last November, Snohomish County also lost another independent grocer when Olson’s Food Emporium closed in Lynnwood. As grocers such as Olson’s and Top have closed in the county, large retailers have moved in. Over the last year in Snohomish County, Wal-Mart opened one location in Arlington and announced another for Monroe. Costco also said it will open a new store across from the Alderwood mall in two years. And Whole Foods announced plans to open a store in Lynnwood in early 2012.
Haggen Inc. operates 32 supermarkets in Washington and Oregon. Headquartered in Bellingham, Haggen is the largest independent grocer in Washington and the sixth-largest private employer in the state.
The Everett Top Food & Drug will discount merchandise as the closing date approaches, Skaggs said. She did not comment on the future of the Top site.
“We appreciate the patronage of Everett residents and hope they will consider visiting a nearby Top Food & Drug after February,” Skaggs said.
Herald news services contributed to this story.
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