Lompoc will be getting its Albertsons back, after the grocery chain re-acquired many of the 146 stores it sold to Washington-based grocery company Haggen in December 2014.
In an attempt to preserve competition in certain Western states, the Federal Trade Commission required Albertsons to sell 168 of its stores before approving the company’s merger with Safeway, which took place January 2015. Haggen purchased the majority of these stores for $300 million, including six Safeway and Albertsons locations throughout Santa Barbara County.
Haggen, which grew nearly ninefold after its deal with Albertsons, opened the rebranded Lompoc location in February 2015. However, the chain had apparently bitten off more than it could chew and filed for bankruptcy within months. The Lompoc store ultimately closed, along with more than 100 other Haggen locations.
In November, Albertsons paid $14 million to reclaim 33 of its stores across Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. Carlos Illingworth, the Albertsons director of communications for Southern California, said in an email to the Sun that Albertsons will reopen three of its former stores in Santa Barbara County, including the Albertsons in Lompoc.
The reacquired Albertsons locations will hire back many of its former employees, Illingworth’s email said.
“This has been our top priority,” he wrote. “The number of returning employees varies by store and is largely determined by how many apply, as well as seniority and other terms of our collective bargaining agreement with the union.”
The reopened stores will see changes to their shelves, as well: Albertsons plans to add more organic foods, craft beers, and local wines to the mix.
Illingworth said the local wine and beer vendors for the Lompoc location are not finalized. However, the recently reopened Goleta Albertsons is stocking wines from Rancho Sisquoc Winery in Santa Maria, Lafond Winery in Buellton, and Sanford Winery in Lompoc, among others. Local craft beers at the Goleta location come from Santa Maria’s Figueroa Mountain Brewing, BarrelHouse Brewing in Paso Robles, and Firestone Walker Brewing, also in Paso Robles.
Albertsons has yet to announce the grand opening date for its Lompoc location. When it opens, the store will operate daily from 6 a.m. to midnight.
This article appears in Mar 3-10, 2016.