A year ago, Haggen rapidly expanded its reach into California and neighboring areas. Today, the grocer is struggling financially and is in-between a bankruptcy process that has pressured it to shutter several of its grocery stores.
On Thursday, Haggen requested permission from a bankruptcy court to allow its closing of 100 more stores on top of the 27 stores that it previously announced to be closed down before it entered into the bankruptcy proceedings, Oregon Live has learned.
It didn't help that the grocer failed to find interested buyers of its West Coast empire, so now Haggen is decided on locking down 100 of its grocery stores.
If Haggen gets approval from the court, the stores that will be affected are those located in Nevada, Arizona and California — areas where it expanded this year when it bought 146 stores with the help of a merger with Albertsons and Safeway, as per SeattleTimes.
Given the number of stores it is shutting down, Haggen could be looking at cutting thousands of jobs, including over 5,000 jobs in the Southwest.
Since the bankruptcy process started on Sept. 9, Haggen has voiced out its plan of focusing on its Pacific Northwest operations.
Haggen Pacific Northwest CEO John Clougher said, "Haggen plans to continue to build its brand in partnership with its dedicated corporate support and store teams. Haggen has a long record of success in the Pacific Northwest and these identified stores will have the best prospect for ongoing excellence."
Cougher was also quoted by CBS Los Angeles as saying, "Although this has been a difficult process and experience, we will remain concentrated in the Pacific Northwest where we began, focusing on fresh Northwest products and continuing our support and involvement in the communities we serve."
The massive closing is also expected to yield $125.6 million for the sale of inventory and other assets of the 100 grocery stores. The amount is expected to give the company a "necessary and significant cash infusion."
