- Michael DeMasi
- Reporter
- Email: mdemasi@bizjournals.com
Will the demise of A&P mean more growth for Price Chopper?
“Everything’s possible,” was Neil Golub’s answer when asked whether Schenectady-based Golub Corp. has any interest in A&P stores following the grocer’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing Dec. 12.
The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., better known as A&P., has said it will keep its nearly 400 stores open as it reorganizes its debt.
David J. Livingston, a supermarket industry analyst in Milwaukee, said an asset sale is likely. The bankruptcy filing was no surprise to the industry.
“Competitors have been circling, flying around like buzzards for months,” Livingston said. “They’ve been doing due diligence to determine what stores they’d like to buy.”
A&P no longer has stores in the Albany region, but there are A&P markets in the Hudson Valley, including in Peekskill, White Plains and Scarsdale.
“We’re always open to opportunities,” Golub said. “If an opportunity presents itself, then we’ll make every effort to take advantage of it. We have a good solid business. We want to continue to grow.”
The Golub Corp. has 128 stores in the Northeast, including six former P&C stores it bought this year in central New York and New Hampshire. Total revenue last year was $3.4 billion.
Livingston said it’s possible Golub Corp. could “pick up maybe a handful of stores.” He doubted it would venture into bigger markets such as Philadelphia, New York City and Washington where Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea own stores under the names Waldbaum’s, The Food Emporium, Super Fresh, Pathmark and Food Basics.
A string of bad management decisions hurt A&P over the years, Livingston said. The company cited heavy debt and high costs in its bankruptcy filing, according to news reports.
Golub, who took over the supermarket business from his father and uncle, remembers how powerful A&P once was in the industry.
“When I was a kid, when AP turned its head, everybody turned with them,” Golub said.
mdemasi@bizjournals.com | 518-640-6814
Read more: Price Chopper eyes A&P's bankruptcy | The Business Review
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