Save-A-Lot owner will probably take a loss on struggling grocery chain

[Sherman A1]

Not long ago, Save-A-Lot was one of the supermarket industry’s rising stars, adding stores and raking in profits for its parent company.

Now, two and a half years after being sold to a Canadian private equity firm, the discount chain is struggling. Weighed down by $728 million in debt and losing market share to German-owned chains Aldi and Lidl, Save-A-Lot reportedly is for sale once again.

One analyst thinks no buyer will offer close to the $1.4 billion that parent company Onex paid in 2016. “A responsible offer would be for Onex to sell Save-A-Lot for $1 and assume half the debt,” says Burt Flickinger III, managing director of Strategic Resource Group.

Save-A-Lot was founded in Cahokia in 1977 as a hard discount grocer, meaning that it offered a limited assortment at low prices. It was sold to Wetterau, a Hazelwood-based wholesaler, in 1988, and Minneapolis-based Supervalu bought Wetterau in 1993.

https://www.stltoday.com/business/columns/david-nicklaus/save-a-lot-owner-will-probably-take-a-loss-on/article_703b627c-e87b-510b-b831-28cdab3c9e61.html

[louis-t]

1. They got 'Mitt Romneyed'.

"Saddled with $728 million in debt". Meanwhile, the private equity firm payed themselves millions from the loans they arranged. Very few companies ever emerge from equity firm takeovers better off than they were.

[Sherman A1]

3. Seems to be the case

Unfortunate that it had to be that way.

[NewDayOranges]

2. I only go to Save-A-Lots when my favorite fresh fruits are on sale...

But whenever I go, no matter which one I go to, the parking lot is full and the store is packed!

[Sherman A1]

4. They are not my first choice by any means and I shop their ad

for a very, very few items but as you mentioned they seem to be busy.

[SWBTATTReg]

5. Interesting. Hope that they keep in business or at least someone steps in and ...

re-invigorates the company (Save-A-Lot). We lost all of the Shop N Saves here in STLMO when their parent company (Supervalu too) closed/sold them all. Quite a few of the old Shop N Save stores were sold and remodeled by Schnuck's, so that's a good thing.

At one location of an old and permanently closed Shop N Save, a brand new Aldi's was opened.