FILE – Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen leaves federal court after testifying during a federal court hearing on Sept. 4, 2024, in Portland, Ore.
“If we don’t do something, the corner grocery store is in real danger,” Kroger attorney Matt Wolf said. But Wolf pushed back, saying Kroger and Albertsons were competing for the same customers as retailers that have lower labor costs because their workers aren’t unionized.Kroger has said it plans to invest $1 billion in lower prices, if the merger goes through. Wolf said the company would focus on lowering prices “from day one.”
But Wolf said Tuesday that C&S has the experience and national scale to handle the divestiture. “We picked the party that could get the job done,” he said., based in Boise, Idaho, operates 2,273 stores in 34 states, including brands like Safeway, Jewel Osco and Shaw’s. Together, the companies employ around 710,000 people.
“The corporations admitted under oath, despite repeated comments to the public and media to the contrary, that some stores may close after a merger, prices may not actually go down after a merger and claims they have made to protect union jobs are not legally enforceable,” the group said in a statement.
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