Albertsons says it plans to divest 10 Idaho stores in merger. Is yours on this list?

David Staats, Idaho Statesman

POCATELLO (Idaho Statesman) — Kroger and Albertsons person released a database of each nan stores they would waste to different institution if national regulators o.k. their scheme to merge. The database includes 10 Albertsons stores successful Idaho, six of which are successful Boise — nan metropolis wherever nan market concatenation was calved 85 years ago. One is successful eastbound Idaho.

Cincinnati-based Kroger, which operates nan Fred Meyer concatenation successful nan Northwest, is trying to get Albertsons, nan Boise-based concatenation founded by Joe Albertson successful 1939. The companies opportunity nan merger will thief them compete much efficaciously successful nan shifting market market, wherever they look title from Walmart, Amazon, Boise’s WinCo Foods and different stores.

The merger is successful trouble, arsenic nan Federal Trade Commission and aggregate authorities attorneys wide (but not Idaho’s) person sued to artifact it, citing antitrust concerns. The FTC’s lawsuit is moving its measurement done a national court.

If nan companies triumph nan fight, they would waste nan 10 Albertsons Idaho stores and 569 different stores nether type banners to C&S Wholesale Grocers LLC, a little-known business that has operated chiefly arsenic a wholesaler truthful far.

RELATED | Kroger, Albertsons — still hoping to merge — work together to waste much stores to fulfill regulators

THE LIST OF IDAHO STORES

These are nan Idaho stores group to spell to C&S, by city:

Boise

• 10500 West Overland Road
• 5100. West Overland Road
• 909 East Parkcenter Boulevard
• 4700 North Eagle Road
• 6560 South Federal Way
• 3614 West State Street

Meridian

• 20 East Fairview Avenue

Nampa

• 2400 12th Avenue Road

Pocatello

• 330 East Benton Street

Twin Falls

• 1221 Addison Avenue East

RELATED | Why does nan US authorities deliberation a Kroger-Albertsons merger would beryllium bad for market shoppers?

It wasn’t instantly known why these 10 stores were chosen, nor what names nan Idaho stores would receive. Kroger’s woody assigns licensing rights to C&S for Albertsons-brand stores successful California and Wyoming but not successful Idaho. C&S operates 2 unit market chains: Piggly Wiggly successful nan South, Midwest and Northeast, and Grand Union successful New York and Vermont.

A Statesman email to Albertsons connected Tuesday requesting further specifications was not instantly returned, and calls to a institution media statement were not connected.

Kroger and Albertsons primitively said they would waste 13 Idaho Albertsons stores but reduced that to 10 successful April.

Among nan stores not connected nan divestiture database released Tuesday is nan 1 astatine 16th and State streets successful downtown Boise, nan tract of laminitis Joe Albertson’s original shop successful 1939.

RELATED | US sues to artifact merger of market giants Kroger and Albertsons, saying it could push prices higher

COMPANIES PROMISE NO CLOSURES, NO FRONT-LINE JOB LOSSES

The companies person promised regulators, labor and nan nationalist that nary divested stores will close, nary “front-line” workers will suffer their jobs, each collective-bargaining agreements will beryllium honored, and each divested stores will proceed to use from finance arsenic a consequence of nan merger.

They besides promised to little prices.

The Federal Trade Commission isn’t buying that past promise. The agency sued successful February. The Idaho Statesman reported past that nan FTC said Kroger’s acquisition, nan largest projected supermarket merger successful U.S. history, would “eliminate fierce competition” betwixt nan 2 market giants and lead to higher prices for consumers.

Nine states, including Oregon and Nevada, joined nan FTC’s lawsuit. Washington authorities and Colorado person revenge their ain lawsuits.

A national section that says it represents astir 25,000 Kroger and Albertsons workers, including 265 successful North Idaho, said nan merchandise of nan shop database “changes nothing.”

“We stay focused connected stopping nan projected mega-merger for nan aforesaid reasons we person stated since it was first announced complete 20 months agone — because we cognize it would harm workers, it would harm shoppers, it would harm suppliers and communities, and it is illegal,” nan United Food and Commercial Workers 3000 said successful an email.

But a UFCW section that represents immoderate Albertsons workers elsewhere successful Idaho backs nan merger. UFCW Local 555 said successful February that its leaders were impressed by C&S’s management.

A MAJOR IDAHO EMPLOYER

Divesting those stores would trim Albertsons’ Idaho footprint to 27 stores, a distribution halfway successful Meridian and immoderate is kept of its firm office cognition successful Boise.

Albertsons is Idaho’s fourth-largest employer, pinch much than 5,000 workers successful nan state, nan Idaho Department of Labor reports. It is nan biggest employer nationwide of immoderate Idaho company, pinch a reported 285,000 workers.

C&S is owned by New Hampshire billionaire Rick Cohen, who is “the 3rd procreation of nan Cohen family to lead nan company,” according to a bio connected C&S’s website.