SuperValu closes sale on Jewel, others
SuperValu Inc. announced today it has completed the sale of its Itasca-based Jewel-Osco chain, as well as other other grocery stores and pharmacies, to AB Acquisition LLC, an affiliate of a Cerberus Capital Management-led investor consortium for a stock deal valued at $3.3 billion.
The deal also included $100 million in cash and $3.2 billion in debt assumption. The operations of these stores will transfer overnight, the groups said.
The sale, announced in January, includes 178 area Jewel-Osco stores as well as Albertsons, Acem, Shaw and Star Market stores and pharmacies.
Jewel has about 25,000 workers, said SuperValu spokesman Mike Siemienas.
A management team was expected to determine staffing and other organizational changes at the stores and Jewel's headquarters in Itasca, Siemienas had said.
SuperValu has struggled for years to turn around its business. The broader supermarket industry has been facing growing competition from big-box retailers such as Target, drugstore chains and dollar stores. While bigger chains such as Kroger Co. have adapted by tweaking store formats and improving discount programs and product offerings, SuperValu has scrambled to keep pace.
The closure of the deal also signals that Sam Duncan, the former chairman and CEO of Naperville-based OfficeMax Inc., will become CEO of SuperValu, replacing Wayne Sales, the companies said.