A Peek at Kroger’s New C-Store Concept

BLACKLICK, Ohio --The Kroger Co. has launched a new store concept called Fresh Eats MKT, which the company’s CFO describes as “a different kind of a convenience store.”

The first store held its soft opening on May 10 in Blacklick, Ohio.

“Fresh Eats MKT is a fresh, new way to shop,” said Jeff Parker, president of Kroger’s convenience-store division, which includes the company’s small-format stores. “We look forward to serving customers and offering fresh products, friendly service and convenient shopping in a way we’ve never done before.”

Here's a peek inside …

Kroger offered strategic details about the new concept at the Goldman Sachs Global Staples Forum in New York on May 9.

“There’s a plethora of competition out there. It seems like everybody buys foods, so they believe that they can sell food,” Mike Schlotman, Kroger’s executive vice president and chief financial officer, said at the event.

“We go to market in a variety of ways. We have different-size stores. We have a multitude of formats, from convenience stores all the way up to multidepartment stores that are 225,000 square feet. So we try to dissect the market and try to put the right store in the right part of the city that’s going to resonate with the customer,” he said.

“We do have tests out there—a small test in Columbus called Fresh Eats, that’s a different kind of a convenience store.”

The Fresh Eats MKT site includes fuel pumps, a Starbucks and a drive-through Kroger pharmacy. The nearly 12,000-square-foot store also features two Coke Freestyle machines.
 

On Facebook, Kroger said the “new small-format grocery store” offers fresh produce, meat, dairy and wine and beer.                         

Fresh Eats MKT also offers bakery, bulk nuts, mixes and candy.                                                                                                                                                                        

Kroger may rebrand its existing c-stores currently doing business under the Turkey Hill banner, said Supermarket News.

Job listings on the Kroger website suggest the brand is seeking workers in three sites: two in Columbus and one at an existing Turkey Hill store in Marysville, Ohio. A worker at that store reached by phone told the publication that the store was converting to the new brand.

A Kroger spokesperson did not respond to a CSP Daily News request for more details by posting time.

Based in Cincinnati, Kroger owns approximately 2,800 supermarkets, about 1,450 with fuel centers, under a variety of banners in 35 states and the District of Columbia.

It also owns approximately 785 convenience stores, most with fuel, under several banners:

• Kwik Shop: Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska.
• Loaf 'N Jug: Colorado, New Mexico, Nebraska, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Wyoming.
• Quik Stop Markets: California and Nevada.
• Tom Thumb Food Stores: Florida and Alabama.
• Turkey Hill Minit Markets: Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio.
• Smith’s Express: Utah.

The company also recently opened one c-store under the "Kroger" banner in Texas.