Acme To Have New Owner As Part Of $24.6 Billion Deal

Acme Markets will have a new owner as part of a deal worth $24.6 billion.

Albertsons Companies, Acme’s current owner, announced Friday that they will sell to competitor Kroger. Albertsons and Kroger are the two largest supermarket chains in the nation.

According to the terms of the agreement, Kroger would purchase all of Albertsons’ common and preferred stock for an estimated $34.10 per share, or approximately 20 percent more than the company’s Thursday closing price. The $24.6 billion total includes about $4.7 billion in debt owed by Albertsons.

Acme operates a location along New Falls Road in Bristol Township’s Levittown section. It also has nearby stores in Bensalem Township, Lower Southampton Township, Newtown Township, and Northampton Township.

Boise, Idaho-based Albertsons brands in addition to Acme include Jewel-Osco, Safeway, Shaw’s, and Vons. Kroger operates stores under the Dillons, Fred Meyer, Fry’s, Harris Teeter, and Ralph’s banners.

The two companies together employ about 710,000 people and run 4,996 stores, 66 distribution centers, 52 manufacturing plants, 3,972 pharmacies and 2,015 fuel centers. 

The combination would feature stores in 48 states and Washington D.C.

“We are bringing together two purpose-driven organizations to deliver superior value to customers, associates, communities and shareholders,” said Rodney McMullen, Kroger chairman and CEO, who will oversee the combined company. “Albertsons Cos. brings a complementary footprint and operates in several parts of the country with very few or no Kroger stores.

Kroger said the deal means the expanded group of stores would help create a more optimized supply chain.

The combined company would see $1 billion in annual operational savings, which would match the $1 billion Kroger plans to invest in increased employee salaries and benefits after close.

The American Economic Liberties Project, a nonprofit focused on corporate accountability legislation and enforcement of antitrust regulations, had problems with the massive deal between the country’s two largest grocery chains.

“There is no reason to allow two of the biggest supermarket chains in the country to merge — especially with food prices already soaring,” American Economic Liberties Project Executive Director Sarah Miller said Friday. “With 60 percent of grocery sales concentrated among just 5 national chains, a Kroger-Albertons deal would squeeze consumers already struggling to afford food, crush workers fighting for fair wages, and destroy independent, community stores. This merger is a cut and dry case of monopoly power, and enforcers should block it.”

Acme has its roots starting in South Philadelphia in the late 19th century. The Acme brand of the business rose to prominence in the early 1960s and was acquired by Albertsons in 1999, which led to a large expansion.

In the Philadelphia region, Acme competes with Aldi; Amazon Fresh; Giant Food Stores, which is owned by Dutch firm Ahold Delhaize; Target; Trader Joe’s; and Walmart among others.

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