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GOURMET NEWS FEBRUARY 2019 www.gourmetnews.com Retailer News RETAILER NEWS 8 BRIEFS Stop & Shop to Acquire King Kullen Grocery Co. Ahold Delhaize announced in January that Stop & Shop, its largest brand in the United States, has agreed to acquire King Kullen Grocery Co. as part of the brand's continued expansion on Long Island, N.Y. The agreement includes King Kullen's 32 supermarkets, five Wild by Nature stores and the use of its corporate offices located in Bethpage, New York. The acquisition is currently expected to close during the first quarter of 2019, subject to customary closing conditions. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Kroger Announces Succession Plan for Chief Financial Officer J. Michael Schlotman, Kroger's Chief Financial Officer since 2000, has decided to retire in December of 2019. Schlotman will continue as CFO through the end of Kroger's fiscal 2018 and up to April 3, 2019. He will then remain an executive vice president of the company and continue to sit on the senior leadership team to support the company during this transition period until December 28, 2019. Gary Millerchip, CEO of Kroger Personal Finance, will succeed Schlotman as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Kroger, effective April 4, 2019. Stop & Shop Celebrates Grand Opening of New Store Stop & Shop, a neighborhood grocer for more than 100 years, unveiled a fresh new look in Massachusetts with the opening of a 20,950 square-foot store located in Newton Nexus, a recent development in Newton Highlands. This small concept store is the first Stop & Shop location in the state to feature the brand's new logo and updated design. The updates are part of a multi-year, chainwide initiative focused on a more customer-centric approach by providing more fresh, fast, local and healthy options that make grocery shopping easier. The store opened for business on Friday, December 14 and creates approximately 100 new jobs for residents in the area. Wegmans Expands into New York City this Fall Hiring and training are now underway for Wegmans Food Markets' highly-anticipated expansion into New York City at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Located on Flushing Avenue in the Admirals Row development, the new store is scheduled to open this fall. Wegmans plans to employ approximately 500 people at the Brooklyn store, including 150 full-time positions. The majority of employees will be hired locally. Wegmans Brooklyn is a 74,000 square-foot supermarket, including a second-floor mezzanine with nearly 100 seats for the in- store market café. The mezzanine space also has a bar, serving food, wine, beer, and spirits. Wegmans stores have a European open-air market look and feel, offering an abundance of choice, the best ingredients, thousands of organic options, restaurant-quality prepared food and consistent low prices. Wegmans Begins Hiring and Training Full-Time Employees for First North Carolina Store Hiring and training are now underway for full-time positions at Wegmans Food Mar- kets' new Raleigh, North Carolina, store, set to open this fall. The Raleigh store will employ approximately 475 people, the ma- jority of whom will be hired locally. Of these, there are now 150 full-time positions to be filled. "Wegmans is recognized as one of the country's best places to work year after year because we offer flexible scheduling, com- petitive pay, industry-leading benefits, and a family-like environment with many dif- ferent career opportunities all under one roof," said Store Manager Hallie Johnston. "We're committed to hiring good people who are passionate about food and ready to learn and grow with us." Wegmans Raleigh, a 104,000 square-foot supermarket, will include The Burger Bar, a family-friendly, casual restaurant counter that serves burgers, salads, sandwiches, kids' meals, soup, sides and beer and wine by the glass. "Soon after being hired, new employ- ees begin training to learn the skills, serv- ice, and product knowledge that sets our stores apart," said Johnston, who began working for the family-owned company 25 years ago as a part-time cashier. "Part of what makes working at Wegmans so special is the longevity of our employees and the fact that we promote from within." Wegmans has more than 48,000 em- ployees chainwide. Approximately 7,400 of its employees, 15.4 percent of its workforce, have been with the company for more than 15 years. Wegmans has an- nounced plans to open four additional North Carolina stores in the future, in Chapel Hill, Wake Forest and two sites in Cary. Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. is a 98- store supermarket chain with stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland and Massachusetts. The family- owned company, recognized as an industry leader and innovator, celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2016. Wegmans has been named one of the '100 Best Companies to Work For' by FORTUNE magazine for 21 consecutive years, ranking second on the list in 2018. GN Le Macaron French Pastries Sets Eyes on New York Le Macaron French Pastries, an elegant French patisserie that offers guests the finest, authentic French macarons and pas- tries, recently announced plans to intro- duce more than 20 locations in targeted communities throughout New York. The community-focused brand will ignite growth through strategic franchise partner- ships and aims to open the new locations within the next five years. Le Macaron French Pastries currently has more than 50 locations across the na- tion and is looking to ramp up growth through a selective strategy, focusing on a solid foundation of smart franchise partnerships and tactical site selection. Already finding success in the market is franchisee Frank Kelly, whose Yonkers location has been in operation since April 2017. "New York has proven to be the perfect market for Le Macaron French Pastries – the community has been incredibly sup- portive and the community appreci- ates the elevated fla- vors our pastries have to offer," stated Kelly. "From the lo- cals to the millions of visitors that flock to the city every year, we've devel- oped a loyal-fan base with our au- thentic macarons that are unparal- leled in the market. I look forward to watching Le Mac- aron French Pastries further expand its presence throughout New York." Founded by France natives and mother-daughter team Rosalie Guillem and Audrey Saba, Le Macaron French Pastries provides an authentic French ex- perience for Americans nationwide. Upon entering, guests are greeted with brilliant colors and a modern interior complemented with traditional music playing throughout the café. Offering more than 20 flavors of macarons, as well as seasonal flavors, the menu extends to include pastries, gelato, coffee, cakes, éclairs, and more. Known for providing guests with a light dessert with lesser calories, the French patisserie has grown to over 50 locations through strategic franchise partnerships. "New York draws many parallels to our native area of France, being rich in culture with a thriving econ- omy," said Rosalie Guillem, Chief Execu- tive Officer and co- Founder of Le Macaron French Pas- tries. "As a prime state for expansion, espe- cially with our versa- tile mobile cart franchise opportunity, we look forward to in- creasing our footprint through the downtown Manhattan area, as well as Williamsburg and Staten Island, with franchise partners to help give all New York residents access to our little bites of heaven known as macarons." In larger metropolitan cities, like New York, Le Macaron French Pastries offers a new franchise opportunity which aims to lean into the growing quick-serve and snack brand trend of kiosks, mobile carts, and express locations. As consumers' on- the-go lifestyle continues to accelerate, Le Macaron French Pastries seeks to capitalize on these captive audiences at malls, air- ports, sporting events, festivals and other gatherings. GN

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