Kroger Seeking New Markets

Executives of Kroger Co. (Cincinnati) told investors that its strategy includes identifying markets it can fill in with additional stores, according to a report in Supermarket News.

The markets where the company has deployed this fill-in strategy “do show good returns, and as long as we can keep doing that, we can continue,” said senior vp Mike Ellis, who will become president and chief operating officer at the end of the year.

He said the acquisition this year of Harris Teeter Supermarkets (Matthews, N.C.) only increases the opportunities to fill in markets because of the number of new territories where that chain operates.

“What we are ahead of schedule on is understanding the markets where we want to [fill in with additional stores],” said cfo Michael Schlotman. However, he said, that doesn’t necessarily mean new stores are opening at a faster pace in those markets yet, nor does it signal that any additional acquisitions are being considered.