Major Retail Chains That "Skipped" Your Area, Past or Present?

[PurdueBill]

Meijer was never closer to Northeast Ohio than Mansfield (actually Ontario) and Sandusky until 2019 when they made a concerted effort to build, despite plans back in the 90s (when the Mansfield and Sandusky stores opened, with the "pineapple" near the grocery entry and the translucent panels across the top of the front, classic 90s design).  They owned a tract of land off I-480 in Twinsburg, for example, but never opened a store there and eventually sold the land.  Now there are more and more of them (although still not one close enough to my neighborhood yet) in the area.

As far as Kroger, one of the few old Krogers around that had been bought by Giant Eagle and converted bit the dust in 2015 when they built a big new Market District store nearby.  If you knew Kroger, you knew seeing the exterior and especially seeing the inside that it was once a Kroger.

On the former Giant Eagle site is a Menards now, another store that had not been in the area until 2018.  The closest one was in Massillon, and now there are ones in the Falls, Brimfield, and even Cleveland proper among others.

[Takumi]

Until this year, Royal Farms skipped the Richmond area, with locations in Nova and Hampton Roads, but one opened up here a few months ago and another is scheduled to be built next year.

[Vaulter]

Red Lobster has a few locations in Connecticut but none elsewhere in New England.

[ibthebigd]

It's amazing how many chains boundary is Kentucky

Meijer
Menards
Krystal

Soon Kentucky will be the farthest north they go

When I moved here in 2010 Culver's boundary was Kentucky now its all over

SM-G996U

[Ted$8roadFan]

Chick-fil-A has more of a presence in New England than they did before.

[Dirt Roads]

Kroger is long-gone from Raleigh-Durham (and even longer out of Charlotte), after purchasing Charlotte area-based Harris Teeter (and eventually converting many of the old Kroger locations to Harris-Teeter).  But it was odd that Kroger completely skipped over the Triad in the process of developing markets in North Carolina. 

[elsmere241]

Kroger is long-gone from Raleigh-Durham (and even longer out of Charlotte), after purchasing Charlotte area-based Harris Teeter (and eventually converting many of the old Kroger locations to Harris-Teeter).  But it was odd that Kroger completely skipped over the Triad in the process of developing markets in North Carolina. 

Really?  When I lived in Raleigh or Apex (granted, 1998-2002) I preferred Kroger over Harris Teeter or Food Lion.

[SectorZ]

Red Lobster has a few locations in Connecticut but none elsewhere in New England.

They didn't skip most of New England, they pulled out in the early-2000's or so. Had a few in Massachusetts and New Hampshire that just couldn't compete with local fare.

[1995hoo]

Kroger is long-gone from Raleigh-Durham (and even longer out of Charlotte), after purchasing Charlotte area-based Harris Teeter (and eventually converting many of the old Kroger locations to Harris-Teeter).  But it was odd that Kroger completely skipped over the Triad in the process of developing markets in North Carolina. 

Really?  When I lived in Raleigh or Apex (granted, 1998-2002) I preferred Kroger over Harris Teeter or Food Lion.

I'm curious to know what sort of timetable "long gone" denotes in this context. Dirt Roads's comment prompted me to look at Google Maps to see whether the Kroger I used to patronize in Durham (admittedly, 1995 to 1998) is still there. The map shows it's now a Teeter, but the Street View image from 2018 shows it as still being a Kroger. In my mind, four years ago isn't all that "long gone."

[Vaulter]

Red Lobster has a few locations in Connecticut but none elsewhere in New England.

They didn't skip most of New England, they pulled out in the early-2000's or so. Had a few in Massachusetts and New Hampshire that just couldn't compete with local fare.

I figured that was the reason but I didn't know they used to have those locations

[WillWeaverRVA]

Until this year, Royal Farms skipped the Richmond area, with locations in Nova and Hampton Roads, but one opened up here a few months ago and another is scheduled to be built next year.

Where's the second location going to be?

[Dirt Roads]

Kroger is long-gone from Raleigh-Durham (and even longer out of Charlotte), after purchasing Charlotte area-based Harris Teeter (and eventually converting many of the old Kroger locations to Harris-Teeter).  But it was odd that Kroger completely skipped over the Triad in the process of developing markets in North Carolina. 

Really?  When I lived in Raleigh or Apex (granted, 1998-2002) I preferred Kroger over Harris Teeter or Food Lion.

I'm curious to know what sort of timetable "long gone" denotes in this context. Dirt Roads's comment prompted me to look at Google Maps to see whether the Kroger I used to patronize in Durham (admittedly, 1995 to 1998) is still there. The map shows it's now a Teeter, but the Street View image from 2018 shows it as still being a Kroger. In my mind, four years ago isn't all that "long gone."

Sorry, COVID makes everything seem like a long time. 

Kroger opened several additional new stores in Raleigh back around 2002, and the neighborhoods didn't develop around those shopping centers so they closed those 10 years later.  Kroger announced that it was buying Harris-Teeter on July 8, 2013 and the remaining stores in North Carolina were certainly nervous.  The local unions hammered out an agreement to extend the closure date (I'm guessing 5 years from then, but don't know that as a fact), and the agreement required that the stores not be replaced with non-unionized Harris Teeters for another 2 years thereafter.  Indeed, Kroger announced that they were leaving Raleigh-Durham on June 13, 2018.  Some of the old Kroger stores were partially reopened as Harris-Teeter pharmacy-only prior to the 2-year moratorium.  Kroger left Charlotte way back in the late 1980s.  They did a crazy double-swap with Bi-Lo in a 6-month window that will make your head swim.

Not sure what the local union was, but about 12 years ago or so I was visiting family in West Virginia when there was a picket line (non-strike) at their local Kroger.  Oddly, they were members of the United Steelworkers union instead of what they traditionally belonged to (now United Food and Commercial Workers Union).

Kroger was the only grocery chain that was worth travelling to Durham for.  We sometimes will shop at some of the Harris-Teeter stores in Chapel Hill when we need a specialty supply that we can't get at Food Lion or Lowes Foods.

[abefroman329]

That reminds me, the only Macaroni Grill in Chicagoland is at O'Hare.

Whoa!  When did the one at Danada Square (Wheaton) close?

Don't know, I don't get out to Wheaton very often

I see Illinois isn't even listed as one of the states to choose from on their website.

Now THIS is an interesting rabbit hole I went down.  O'Hare's website says it's open:

https://www.flychicago.com/ohare/eatshopmore/eat/pages/default.aspx?filteramenityid=126&filteramenityname=Macaroni%20Grill%20%20&filterlocation=K2

If you go to the Macaroni Grill website, click Locations, and then View All Locations, you can click Illinois, and there's the O'Hare location:

https://www.macaronigrill.com/locations/all-locations#illinois

And THAT says the location is open from 11 am to 7 pm, but then if you click More Information, it says it's temporarily closed:

https://www.macaronigrill.com/locations/location?id=2239

And the menu isn't on the website, but they serve (served?) breakfast there.  As I recall, it was basically chicken parm with scrambled eggs on a bed of potatoes, and it wasn't bad.

Oh, I walked past the location on Saturday, and it was open.

[abefroman329]

Semi-related, but I just spent a week in rural Arkansas, and I have to say, if your community can support numerous dollar stores, then it can probably support one Aldi.

[Takumi]

Until this year, Royal Farms skipped the Richmond area, with locations in Nova and Hampton Roads, but one opened up here a few months ago and another is scheduled to be built next year.

Where's the second location going to be?

River's Bend in Chester.

[ibthebigd]

Semi-related, but I just spent a week in rural Arkansas, and I have to say, if your community can support numerous dollar stores, then it can probably support one Aldi.

Do they have Save A Lot's

In Kentucky almost every county at least has a Save A Lot or a IGA.

SM-G996U

[XamotCGC]

I think Kroger's owns Harris Teeter in the same way they own Frys, Ralph's, and Dillion's. 

[WillWeaverRVA]

I think Kroger's owns Harris Teeter in the same way they own Frys, Ralph's, and Dillion's. 

Correct, Harris Teeter was bought by Kroger in 2013 in a $2.4 billion all-cash deal.

[kphoger]

I think Kroger's owns Harris Teeter in the same way they own Frys, Ralph's, and Dillion's. 

You think Kroger's what owns them?

[hbelkins]

Kroger withdrew from a bunch of Ohio Valley locations years ago after a union work stoppage. I think the closures were centered on West Virginia, but seems like some locations in the Ashland area shut down too. Anyone remember the details?

[abefroman329]

I think Kroger's owns Harris Teeter in the same way they own Frys, Ralph's, and Dillion's. 

You think Kroger's what owns them?

I've been assured that the chain is called "Kroger's" because there are more than one of them.

[kphoger]

I've been assured that the chain is called "Kroger's" because there are more than one of them.

  ...  and also  ...   

[abefroman329]

Semi-related, but I just spent a week in rural Arkansas, and I have to say, if your community can support numerous dollar stores, then it can probably support one Aldi.

Do they have Save A Lot's

In Kentucky almost every county at least has a Save A Lot or a IGA.

SM-G996U

Oh, maybe - there was a Brookshire's and a Kroger['s], but the latter was a pretty good drive away.

[hbelkins]

Semi-related, but I just spent a week in rural Arkansas, and I have to say, if your community can support numerous dollar stores, then it can probably support one Aldi.

Do they have Save A Lot's

In Kentucky almost every county at least has a Save A Lot or a IGA.

SM-G996U

Not every county. Owsley has neither. (But they do have a Shopwise, and the Lee County Save-A-Lot is located just two miles from the Owsley County line.

[GCrites]

Kroger withdrew from a bunch of Ohio Valley locations years ago after a union work stoppage. I think the closures were centered on West Virginia, but seems like some locations in the Ashland area shut down too. Anyone remember the details?

Was it a bunch of really small (<20,000 sqft) locations in small towns? I remember there used to be a website that documented those. They're not much like what we're used to seeing in most of Ohio.