Stop & Shop to close a number of “underperforming” stores.

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by Ally Griffin

Stop & Shop plans to close an unspecified number of its grocery stores across the Northeast that the company said are “underperforming.”

“Stop & Shop will make some difficult decisions to close select underperforming store locations to help ensure the long-term health and future growth of our business,” a spokesperson for the department store chain said in a statement.

The Massachusetts-based company currently operates nearly 400 stores in five states — the Bay State along with New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Rhode Island.

It has “redesigned” and made improvements to nearly half of its stores.

“We have completed more than 190 remodels to date, which continue to perform well, and we are committed to continuing to invest in our stores — as well as our pricing — to deliver a great in-store experience and great values ​​to our customers,” the company statement said.

The spokesperson said it was too early to share information about any specific stores that were closing and did not provide an expected number of locations that would close permanently.

The company did not provide a timeline on when it is expected to close.

The news was first announced by the CEO of Stop & Shop’s parent company, Ahold Delhaize, at an Investor Strategy Day held in the Netherlands last week, according to The New York Times. Boston news station WCVB.

“As Stop & Shop embarks on its next phase, we will be decisive and take thoughtful and appropriate actions to ensure a stable future for the brand,” US CEO JJ Fleeman said in his remarks to investors.

“Stop and Shop has already evaluated its overall portfolio and will make difficult decisions to close underperforming stores to create a healthy long-term store base and grow the brand,” he said.

The CEO added that the company plans to “focus on the most important markets, including those where the brand has strong brand density, has a strong market position, or has stores that are performing well.”

Ahold Delhaize also operates the US supermarket chains Food Lion, Hannaford, Giant Food and The Giant Company.