Friday, September 20, 2024

Winn-Dixie to Aldi Conversions - Rolling List

List of Winn-Dixie stores converting to Aldi

Your source for continuing coverage of the Aldi-Southeastern Grocers merger.

Last updated: September 20, 2024

Following the recent news of Aldi's completed acquisition of all Winn-Dixie and Harveys supermarkets, we have now begun to see plans to convert several SEG locations to the German discount format trickle out. With this, your Southeastern Retail Bloggers have decided to compile a rolling list of all stores we've uncovered that are set to change as part of the "negotiated takeover". All of the locations below have been independently verified by the MFR team using either official building permits, construction plans listed on bid sites, Aldi's website, or other news outlets. We plan to update this list as new stores are uncovered.

Alabama:

Florida:

Winn-Dixie #0051 | Fort Caroline Trading Post | 6060-10 Fort Caroline Road | Jacksonville, FL | Winn Win

Winn-Dixie #0489 | Milton, FL | *Unconfirmed by MFR Team

Winn-Dixie #0672 | New Port Richey Market Place | 12120 Moon Lake Rd | New Port Richey, FL | Winn Win

Winn-Dixie #0720 | 4100 McCall Rd | Englewood, FL | Winn Win

Winn-Dixie #0737 | Kings Crossing Shopping Center | 2000 Kings Highway | Port Charlotte, FL | Winn Win

Winn-Dixie #2309 | Ormond Beach Shopping Center | 353 West Granada Blvd | Ormond Beach, FL | Down Down

Winn-Dixie #2313 | 2880 Howland Blvd | Deltona, FL | Down Down | September 15, 2024

Winn-Dixie #2404 | 5805 Manatee Ave | Bradenton, FL | Winn Win | Late 2024

Winn-Dixie #2413 | 15692 N Dale Mabry Hwy | Tampa, FL | Down Down | September 29. 2024

Winn-Dixie #2421 | 1651 SE Hwy 19 | Crystal River, FL | Winn Win | November 17, 2024

Winn-Dixie #2425 | 1360 Tampa Road | Palm Harbor, FL | Sweetbay

Winn-Dixie #2433 | 2100 West Swann Ave | Tampa, FL | Deluxe Down Down

Winn-Dixie #2443 | 3327 9th St N | St. Petersburg, FL | Sweetbay

Winn-Dixie #2474 | 61 Bell Blvd N | Lehigh Acres, FL | Down Down

Winn-Dixie #2480 | 5660 Bayshore Rd | North Fort Myers, FL | Down Down

Winn-Dixie #2491 | 1737 E Oak St | Arcadia, FL | Sweetbay

Winn-Dixie #2499 | 16751 Fishhawk Blvd | Lithia, FL | Sweetbay | October 27, 2024 *Speculated closure date

Winn-Dixie #2507 | 17649 Gunn Hwy | Odessa, FL | Sweetbay

Winn-Dixie #2517 | 13016 Race Track Rd | Tampa, FL | Winn Win

Winn-Dixie #2523 | Lake Sumter Landing | 820 Old Camp Rd | The Villages, FL | Down Down

Winn-Dixie #2527 | 252 Harbor Village Ln | Apollo Beach, FL | Down Down | September-October 2024

Georgia:

Winn-Dixie #0067 | 341 Venture Dr | Brunswick, GA | Winn Win | July 14, 2024

Harveys #1601 | Douglas, GA | *Speculated by the MFR Team due to recent permits filed

Harveys #1697 | Market Place of Americus | 1208 Crawford St | Americus, GA | Low Low

Louisiana:

Winn-Dixie #1405 | 2112 Belle Chasse Hwy | Gretna, LA | Winn Win | November 17, 2024 *Speculated closure date

Winn-Dixie #1411 | 5901 Airline Drive | Metairie, LA | Down Down | July 14, 2024

Winn-Dixie #1449 | 804 W Oak St | Amite, LA | Winn Win | September 15, 2024

Winn-Dixie #1504 | 3030 Pontchartrain Dr | Slidell, LA | Winn Win | October 6, 2024 *Speculated closure date

Winn-Dixie #1590 | 17682 Airline Hwy | Prairieville, LA | Winn Win | September 29, 2024 *Speculated closure date

Mississippi:

Winn-Dixie #1511 | Orange Grove Shopping Center | 11312 North Highway 49 | Gulfport, MS | Winn Win

Current Count

As of the last update, we have confirmed that 52/369 Winn-Dixie stores and 2/25 Harveys stores have been put up for conversion.

Additionally, take a look at this map of all Aldi, Harveys, and Winn-Dixie locations as of the closing of the merger and see if you can predict which stores will be the next to convert. Feel free to leave any ideas down in the comments or give us a shout if you find news of another store that we have missed in the list above!

In an unexpected twist, it appears that Aldi plans to construct liquor stores of its own in Florida, marking a first for the company. Plans for the conversion of Winn-Dixies #2413 in Tampa and #2527 in Apollo Beach reveal existing Winn-Dixie liquor stores being rebadged and relocated to the new Aldi side of the buildings. This poses the question of whether Aldi intends to operate the liquor stores itself or lease them out to a third party. Regardless, it appears that the German discounter has long-term ambitions for the lucrative alcohol market in the state of Florida.

Winn-Dixie #2527 Conversion Plans - Exterior Elevation featuring relocated liquor store

Stores with future liquor stores notated in building plans:

Winn-Dixie Wine & Spirits #0488 | Panama City Beach, FL

Winn-Dixie Wine & Spirits #0720 | Englewood, FL

Winn-Dixie Wine & Spirits #2413 | Tampa, FL

Winn-Dixie Wine & Spirits #2433 | Tampa, FL

Winn-Dixie Wine & Spirits #2491 | Arcadia, FL

Winn-Dixie Wine & Spirits #2527 | Apollo Beach, FL

Additional details and liquor stores will be noted as they are revealed. In the meantime, feel free to leave a comment below if you have more information on this breaking news.

Your Southeastern Retail Bloggers strive to keep this list current; however, with any breaking news, there may be errors or missing information. Please leave a comment below if you discover any incorrect information or have a tip that we may have missed. Most importantly, don't forget to document the world around you because what may be taken for granted today could be gone tomorrow!

My Florida Retail Blog is run as a passion project by a team of forensic internet scrapers, history junkies, and retail enthusiasts. Since we are not beholden to anybody, we are not afraid to share the good, bad, and ugly truth. To that, we try to keep to the facts and shy away from letting our biases intervene with our reporting. If you would like to learn more about our personal projects, make sure to check out The Sing Oil Blog, The Albertsons Florida Blog, and The Mid-South Retail Blog.

Monday, September 9, 2024

Former Winn-Dixie #1357 - Biloxi, MS

The Sun Herald (Archive.ph) - January 22, 2017

Winn-Dixie #1357

Popp's Ferry Shopping Center

2384 Pass Road

Biloxi, MS 39531

Welcome back to My Florida Retail Blog! Two weeks ago, I shared my post on the former Gulfport Sing Store and the nearby D'Iberville Winn-Dixie Marketplace, the latter which closed back in August to make way for Aldi. It was while conducting research for that store when I came across some photos I had filed away several years ago. Today, we'll be back on the Mississippi Gulf Coast to stop by a store with an even stranger history than the supermarket in the Kmart Shopping Center.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Biloxi's other former Winn-Dixie just across the bay. Store #1357 closed back in the 2018 bankruptcy closure round, meaning I never got the chance to see it for myself. Despite this, I still figured the story behind this supermarket was worthy of being an exception to my rule.

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - July 18, 1971

The tale of this supermarket begins in 1971 when the Mitchell Corp. of Mobile announced it was constructing a new 86,700 square foot shopping center at the corner of Popp's Ferry & Pass Roads in Biloxi. The original tenants included a 50,100 sq ft Rose's department store, a 5,000 sq ft Eckerd drug store, and an 18,200 sq ft Winn-Dixie super market.

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - November 1, 1971

The Winn-Dixie held its grand opening on November 1, 1971, while offering lucky shoppers the chance to win an upright freezer "filled with frozen food & a whole W.D. Brand U.S. Choice beef loin," a Hamilton blender, (5) $10 gift certificates, (5) redi-basted turkeys, or (30) books of Top Value stamps. I would love to win an upright freezer full of food from a grand opening, but doesn't that seem like it would be a bit hard to throw into the station wagon?

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - October 6, 1986

The store seemingly chugged along for the next 15 years until 1985, when Louisiana firm Cal Equity purchased the plaza. At that time, the rest of the Popps Ferry Shopping Center was beginning to struggle and was showing its age. Cal Equity set out to revitalize the dated complex with a refreshed façade to draw in new shoppers and businesses. By the following year, the Winn-Dixie & TG&Y-anchored center had attracted a women's apparel store and barbecue restaurant in addition to the existing shoe store, and video rental shop.

The group's purchases of Popps Ferry S/C and the neighboring Carnaby Street plaza served as steppingstones in the company's mission to buy up deteriorating centers at a discount and turn them around for a profit. These two locations seemed to be solid buys, considering how plans were already in place for a new Wal-Mart across the street adjacent to a circa 1983 Kroger Greenhouse store. That non-super Wal-Mart surprisingly survived until 2012 when the chain decided to build a Supercenter on a nearby vacant lot.

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - October 22, 1989

Even with the revitalization of the shopping center, the Winn-Dixie couldn't stand the fierce competition from the newer Kroger store. The Beef People decided to hang up their apron for the first last time in October 1989.

Interestingly, the original Winn-Dixie box appears to have survived largely unaltered, now serving as the home for Goodwill.

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - December 8, 1994

Speaking of Kroger, in 1994, the Cincinnati-based company decided to call it quits in Coastal Mississippi and sold its four area stores to Mobile-based Delchamps. The details of this transaction included a total of seven Kroger stores being acquired by Delchamps in exchange for $4 million and two Delchamps stores in Northern Mississippi ( here and here).

The Daily Advisor (Newspapers.com) - Former Kroger / Delchamps in Lafayette, LA - July 9, 1997

Likewise, Delchamps took control of the 43,000 sq ft Greenhouse Kroger across the street from the former Winn-Dixie and held a grand reopening on December 15, 1994. It seems that the plan all along was to squeeze out competition from the region because the Alabama grocer already had plans to construct a "giant" new store back at Popp's Ferry (called Old America Shopping Center at the time).

Retail Retell does an awesome job of explaining the outcome of the other locations involved in the transaction in this post.

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - March 23, 1995

Three months after opening, the Pass Road Krog-champs closed its doors to make way for the new 61,000 sq ft supermarket in the Old America Shopping Center. This was the largest store at the time for the chain of 120 supermarkets, with business reportedly "exceeding expectations". This was another notable revitalization of the former Popp's Ferry Shopping Center which fell on hard times when the Winn-Dixie and TG&Y both closed, followed by the relocation of Campo electronics & appliances in 1992.

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - July 9, 1997

By 1997, Stein Mart had taken over the former Kroger, and Delchamps had sold out to Jitney Jungle, bringing another new grocer to the 25 year old shopping center.

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - February 22, 1998

Despite its large size, Jitney Jungle opted to brand the newly-acquired Biloxi store as "Jitney Supermarket & Pharmacy" rather than "Jitney Premier". I'm not entirely sure what the logic here was, but I'm also not well versed in the history of the Jackson-based grocer.

Fast forward to October 1999, and the first Mississippi company to recognize $1 billion in revenue found itself in the hot seat at bankruptcy court. Executives from Jitney Jungle cited, "large debt, increased competition, and less activity by its vendors," with the former mostly being attributed to the 1997 Delchamps acquisition.

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - April 13, 2001

Following two years as a Delchamps and four years as a Jitney, this store came under Winn-Dixie's ownership in January 2001 along with 67 others. W/D seemed to flail with the recently acquired Jitney Jungle and Delchamps banners, especially since the latter chains struggled to keep shelves stocked and their image up following the 1999 bankruptcy announcement.

I had the pleasure of meeting a member of the Delchamps family several weeks ago; while this person didn't have much to say about the former family business, he did mention how he'd always heard that Winn-Dixie's acquisition of Jitney Jungle is what destined The Beef People to their 2005 bankruptcy battle. Based on what I've learned in my research, I can see that the ship began to sink with W/D's missteps as early as the 1980's; however, the debt from the Jitney purchase seems to have been the biggest boat anchor of them all.

Courtesy Ryan B. (Logopedia)

Who knew that the dissolution of Delchamps could arguably be traced to the ultimate demise of Jitney Jungle, Winn-Dixie, Bruno's, BI-LO, Sweetbay, Reid's, and Harveys. Some of those may be a stretch, but the purchase of the fledgling Jitney Jungle by Winn-Dixie and Bruno's was not a wise choice for the two companies already teetering on the edge of a cliff. The rest is history.

In any regard, Winn-Dixie saw the 2001 purchase as its chance to reintroduce itself to Mississippi, adding many long-lost locations back into its portfolio. The company continued to expand by opening two new locations built from the ground up in the Jackson metro as it also converted several of the flagship Jitney Premier stores to the W/D banner. The Popp's Ferry store in Biloxi appeared to be one of those new flagship locations considering how the company took over the large, relatively new store in the once-familiar shopping center.

It seems that the third bankruptcy was the charm for store #1357 because in 2018, Winn-Dixie announced it would close the Biloxi supermarket as part of its Chapter 11 restructuring plan, along with the majority of its remaining Jitney acquisitions. The building has remained vacant ever since.

The Sun Herald (Newspapers.com) - March 17, 2018

Shockingly, I first learned about this store in December 2022 when I saw a Grafe Auction listing for the former W/D. The building sat largely untouched for four years following its 2018 closure, likely because there was little interest from third parties in subletting the property. I have since seen reports that local grocer Rouses Market now intends to move in which may have been what set the auction into motion.

Thanks to that aforementioned auction, we get to take one last look inside this storied space. Likewise, all remaining unmarked photos are courtesy of the 2022 fixture sale.

So, what exactly did a flagship Delchamps store look like? I'm not entirely sure, but I do know that this store's heritage could explain many of its anomalies with regard to The Beef People.

Courtesy Brien Powell (Google Maps) - September 2017

For starters, the building's exterior looks like a mashup between a Kmart and a BI-LO.

My cursory search for new Delchamps stores opening after this one leads me to believe it was, in fact, a one-off prototype. At least it makes me feel better to know that this was a unique Delchamps design rather than a break in the norm for Jitney Premier or Winn-Dixie Marketplace.

Courtesy Sandy Carey (Google Maps) - February 2018

Walking in, we would have found the typical BOGO bins (imported all the way from Australia!) leading up to the produce department in the front right.

Courtesy Sandy Carey (Google Maps) - February 2018

Notice how the crown molding on the walls matches the general shape of the exterior façade: this is our first clue that Winn-Dixie inherited most of this store's décor.

We can also see one of the unique floor tile patterns used throughout the space; the rust and gunmetal grey really does clash with Winn-Dixie's familiar teal checkout belts.

The produce displays also look much more elaborate than what we'd typically find in a 2001 W/D.

The thing that gets me is the fact that the produce department sign features a ghosted W/D logo in the center. It's entirely possible that The Beef People created their own "Fruit Store" sign; however, I'm inclined to say that they creatively inserted the graphic over an old Delchamps "D". If only I could have seen the sign for myself!

It would take a lot of effort to design custom 3D signage like this when Winn-Dixie was already rolling into its purple / maroon era.

Speaking of the Purple / Maroon package, that's exactly where this sign for the floral department hails from!

The floral counter also appears to match the layout of ones I've seen in other W/D stores – that could just be a coincidence.

Poking our heads down aisle 2, we find rows and rows of empty gondola shelves.

We also see the old "Wall of Values", complete with lots of letters missing their veneers. Notice the glue dots present on the majority of the "LOTS OF SAVINGS FOR YOU" letters? I bet there is the equivalent of alphabet soup lying on the floor below!

Interestingly, the Purple / Maroon Winn-Dixie aisle marker for #1 lists: Chek drinks, Coke products, Pepsi products, soft drinks, beverages, & distilled water. It has no mention of the wall of values, which further leads me to believe that the corresponding wall signage was a leftover. I don't believe that Winn-Dixie even bothered with a wall of values following the Marketplace interior.

Continuing on with aisle one, we find some mysterious brown fluid (the broth for our alphabet soup?) which has pooled up on the floor. What happens in a vacant supermarket stays in a vacant supermarket.

Are we in Munich?

Nein!

By far the most unique décor piece in this store was the giant "Rathskeller" sign over the beer coolers. The word is typically used for a bar or restaurant located in the basement of a German city hall and seems rather out of place in a Mississippi supermarket. I'm also inclined to say that this sign was original to Delchamps.

Je veux un bretzel!

Courtesy Charles B. (Foursquare) - January 2013

Our next special sign was the one for luncheon meats. In typical Winn-Dixie fashion, half of the neon was burned out while this store was still open.

The ribbon motifs certainly remind me of a sign from a Winn-Dixie Marketplace; however, knowing what I know about neon (and knowing that Winn-Dixie essentially quit installing it by the turn of the Millennium) tells me that this, too, is also likely original to the building. I guess that brings our score to Delchamps: 3, Winn-Dixie: 1.

We'll take a quick break from the departments to examine aisle nine, where we find some diamonds in the ~~sky~~ floor. These could be from Winn-Dixie, but they also seem like a lot of effort for the struggling supermarket to install since they lead to only minimal gain. Furthermore, the chain had dropped that diamond pattern motif by the time the 2000's had rolled around.

Courtesy t4ex t4ex (Google Maps) - April 2017

Okay, there was a diamond on the wall, too. The thing is all of the diamonds I've seen in Marketplace stores mount darker colors on the horizontal axis rather than the vertical axis like we have here. I know that is completely circumstantial, but I'm just defending my case here!

If I can't convince you with the diamonds, I hope I can convince you with something else in this photo. Take a look at the back wall of the seafood department: there's a sign which reads, "Fisherman's Cove". Winn-Dixie always marketed its seafood departments as the Fisherman's Warf. Meanwhile, Delchamps used the Fisherman's Cove in its marketing. Believe me now?

Below the Fisherman's Cove sign (which was surprisingly removed before the fixture auction), we find this large chalkboard with a sketch of some sea critters. I have to wonder if somebody bought this piece and kept the artwork in place – whoever drew it is more talented than me!

Aren't we just having a whale of a time? It's a shame that this neon light was already burned out by the time the 2017 department photo above was taken.

Continuing on, we find more shelves separating aisles 11 & 12 as well as the seafood counter from the meat department.

Here's the other side of that gondola, with the mysteriously unsigned seafood department off in the distance.

Courtesy Andy H. (Foursquare) - July 2016

Next up, we'll trade diamonds for checkers.

Courtesy t4ex t4ex (Google Maps) - April 2017

Now we see some Winn-Dixie signage! Without fail, The Beef People always managed to retrofit these Transformational-era luncheon/dinner meat signs into stores.

I'm also inclined to say that this "Fresh Meats" sign was one of the few custom pieces crafted by the Jacksonville grocer for this store (shocker). Just look at how much cheaper it appears to be than the rest of the signage, especially considering how it lacks both neon and 3D elements. I'd imagine this space previously featured Delchamps' Butcher Shoppe branding.

This "Restrooms" sign brings the department score to Delchamps: 4, Winn-Dixie: 3.

Courtesy Marteshia Pittman (Google Maps) - July 2017

Passing the restroom hallway, we find an alcove in the back left corner dedicated to the dairy department (and another struggling neon sign).

Hopefully the person who bought the neon yellow cheese was able to fix it up into proper working condition.

At least the 3D dairy sign on the adjacent wall was fully functional and lacked any Delchamps relics that W/D needed to swap out.

Courtesy Loren Levy (Google Maps) - December 2016

Turning around, we find a refrigerated case full of Paula Dean's favorite food group: butter.

It looks like W/D also opted to keep the original refrigeration fixtures because there are no coffin coolers in sight here!

Unfortunately, the auction company didn't provide many interesting shots of the deli / bakery.

At least we get to see the bakery or deli's tile pattern from this angle!

Next up is the pharmacy in the front left corner. Winn-Dixie obviously installed the hanging sign: while I've never seen those specific graphics, they match the Purple / Maroon package to a T.

Rustic may have been the look that the designers were intending, but this banner still looks awfully faded to be on display in 2022.

Courtesy Matthie Ulm (Google Maps) - January 2018

At least it didn't look as yellowed in 2018 (or this person's camera was better at white balancing the shot).

Our final grocery shelves are on the front half of aisles 11 & 12 (it appears that this store would have beleaguered me with its split aisle configuration).

Hmm, what is that I see off in the distance?

Courtesy Olivia (Google Maps) - July 2018

Well, a giant neon customer service sign, of course!

As if we were staring at the marquee of a theater, this massive neon sign used to inform shoppers of the various services offered from the front counter. With only five of the twelve spaces occupied, I wonder what services were nixed over the years.

I'm sure photo processing was one of them, and who knows, Delchamps could have dabbled in dry cleaning, banking, and movie rentals for all I know.

All that was left behind the counter were several dated HP computers. Who would want to buy those in 2022?

Courtesy Matthie Ulm (Google Maps) - January 2018

It's amazing how much nicer this place looked with the lights all turned on.

I'd have to say that the space looks a bit sparse for my taste (and I know Anonymous in Houston will leave a comment about the exposed truss ceiling), but the designers of this store likely created a noteworthy buzz around town when Delchamps opened in 1995. After all, who couldn't at least be impressed by the massive marquee!

Courtesy Mike K. (Foursquare) - September 2013

It seems like this day in September 2013 was also buzz worthy, but that may have only been due to Winn-Dixie needing more cashiers.

In any regard, the crowds certainly died down in the years to follow, just leaving behind empty shelves, a musty scent, and some dirty floors.

Let's check out a few more photos of the old IBM cash registers before we close out this transaction.

The registers themselves aren't particularly interesting (considering how they match most other old W/D's I've shopped at), but these pictures still do a good job of showcasing the left half of the store off in the distance.

"Low Prices Every Day."

Courtesy Vax Wagner (Google Maps) - June 2017

That will conclude this week's (delayed) post, but I hope you enjoyed my upgraded coverage on this jungle of a Delchamps: we covered Plenti of ground!

I'm still not sure what my next post will cover; however, you can rest assured that we will dive into something. If you are too impatient to wait, make sure to keep tabs on the Winn-Dixie to Aldi conversion list in the meantime or take a look at my post on the recently closed D'Iberville Winn-Dixie Marketplace down the road (she was a real beaut).

Also, feel free to provide alternate theories on this store's interior or provide more insight into Delchamps and Jitney Jungle (if you have it) in the comments below!

Until next time,

- The Sing Oil Blogger

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