Publix (Knoxville: 2013, Walmart, rating)

[nashvols]

Originally Posted by weisgarber1

I would venture a guess that that won't happen. There might be something like a merger or acquisition down the road but I believe the two chains have very different markets and clientele and there is room for both in the area market, at least in the near term.

I would agree that Food City is a little bit different in terms of clientele.

If Food City can exist with Kroger, they can exist with Publix. But I do think Publix will have an effect and probably ultimately hurt Food City's bottom line. Some locations could close as a result...but I don't see a force out.

I could see Food City turning more focus to the smaller towns in the area, though, where Kroger and Publix are less likely to locate and/or concentrate their battles.

[TN Tin Man]

Originally Posted by JMT

You drive right by Turkey Creek as you head into Knoxville from Middle Tennessee. It's the large shopping center on the right (south) side of I-40/75 between the Farragut and Lovell Rd exits, with CarMax, Belk, Best Buy, and Gander Mountain all visible from the interstate, and a host of other large retailers such as JCPenney, Walmart and SuperTarget. There's even a big sign on I-40/75 that says "Turkey Creek."

Or you can always go to the Publix web site and see the map:

Publix - New Store Search Publix Stores Publix Stores Search Results



Not to split hairs, but according to the Publix web site there are 30 stores in Middle Tennessee: 28 in metro Nashville and 2 in Clarksville. There are 35 Publix stores in Tennessee: 3 in Chattanooga, 2 (as of next week) in Knoxville, and the rest in Middle Tennessee.

Why would they put a store there..when then have one Pellissippi Parkway ???

The rumor mill has a Target & Publix in Cookeville on West Jefferson ???

[MetropolitanTN]

Market saturation. Just like Kroger is doing in/around Knoxville.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by nashvols

I would agree that Food City is a little bit different in terms of clientele.

If Food City can exist with Kroger, they can exist with Publix. But I do think Publix will have an effect and probably ultimately hurt Food City's bottom line. Some locations could close as a result...but I don't see a force out.

I could see Food City turning more focus to the smaller towns in the area, though, where Kroger and Publix are less likely to locate and/or concentrate their battles.

Tell that to Winn Dixie. Walmart and the mismanagement of their stores and inventory contributed to their demise, but so did Publix on every corner in Florida. In the end, they were only left in the Deep South and Florida and Publix was the last nail in their coffin. Publix also did the same to Albertson's in Florida. Again, Albertson's made a lot of national acquisition errors but Publix effectively ran them out of Florida for all intents and purposes. They either closed their stores or sold them to Publix and there are only a few Albertson's left in Florida.

I agree that Food City won't be forced out. They do a lot of things right where, for at least a decade before its demise, Food City made bad move after bad move. I agree that in several years they may really hurt their bottom line.

The company that I see scrambling since Publix came on the scene is Kroger. This clearly won't hurt them nationally but they are going to seriously undercut their bottom line in Knoxville. I'm glad about that. I think that Kroger was getting complacent around here. They are going to dig in their heels, though. That's why they are almost doubling their space across from Northshore Town Center.

I still say to watch the Ingle's in Farragut. I bet that is the first to go.

And I also think that Whole Foods is watching Publix, hesitant to open on Papermill.

Anyway, Publix is extremely savvy. They've been around for 82 years. They are smart and systematic. They don't make rash decisions but when they decide to make a move, they do. It looks like they are ready to do so. They are also making an expansion in North Carolina.

Anyway, Publix isn't looking at the immediate response at the Northshore Town Center. Even still, I now predominately shop there and I can say that they certainly seem busy enough. There are times that I have difficulty finding a parking space. But I'm also glad that there is no longer the madhouse that happened during grand opening. Everyone from at least a 20-mile radius showed up to try it out, it seemed. They were pulling in a lot of ex-Florida dwellers, even from Crossville and Tellico Village. I even talked to someone from Newport that came just to have a famous Publix sub.

[JMT]

Originally Posted by hiknapster

Tell that to Winn Dixie. Walmart and the mismanagement of their stores and inventory contributed to their demise, but so did Publix on every corner in Florida. In the end, they were only left in the Deep South and Florida and Publix was the last nail in their coffin. Publix also did the same to Albertson's in Florida. Again, Albertson's made a lot of national acquisition errors but Publix effectively ran them out of Florida for all intents and purposes. They either closed their stores or sold them to Publix and there are only a few Albertson's left in Florida.

I agree that Food City won't be forced out. They do a lot of things right where, for at least a decade before its demise, Food City made bad move after bad move. I agree that in several years they may really hurt their bottom line.

The company that I see scrambling since Publix came on the scene is Kroger. This clearly won't hurt them nationally but they are going to seriously undercut their bottom line in Knoxville. I'm glad about that. I think that Kroger was getting complacent around here. They are going to dig in their heels, though. That's why they are almost doubling their space across from Northshore Town Center.

I still say to watch the Ingle's in Farragut. I bet that is the first to go.

And I also think that Whole Foods is watching Publix, hesitant to open on Papermill.

Anyway, Publix is extremely savvy. They've been around for 82 years. They are smart and systematic. They don't make rash decisions but when they decide to make a move, they do. It looks like they are ready to do so. They are also making an expansion in North Carolina.

Anyway, Publix isn't looking at the immediate response at the Northshore Town Center. Even still, I now predominately shop there and I can say that they certainly seem busy enough. There are times that I have difficulty finding a parking space. But I'm also glad that there is no longer the madhouse that happened during grand opening. Everyone from at least a 20-mile radius showed up to try it out, it seemed. They were pulling in a lot of ex-Florida dwellers, even from Crossville and Tellico Village. I even talked to someone from Newport that came just to have a famous Publix sub.

I agree with all of this. And count me among those who drive across the county to shop at Publix and have a Publix sub. I tried to like the subs at Kroger, but it was like eating a sandwich made on a kitchen sponge.

I also agree that Ingles in Farragut probably won't last too long. And I'm going to go out on a limb and make a prediction that Ingles will sell their other Knox County locations to Publix rather than try to compete with them (which Ingles would certainly lose). Other than Farragut, it's interesting that Publix hasn't announced any stores in areas where there is currently an Ingles: Halls, Cedar Lane/Merchants Drive, and Powell. With Kroger building a new store on the other side of I-75 from Ingles in Powell, that, to me, would give Ingles another incentive to cede the competition to Publix. At least I hope so!

[Trevor92]

Originally Posted by hiknapster

The company that I see scrambling since Publix came on the scene is Kroger. This clearly won't hurt them nationally but they are going to seriously undercut their bottom line in Knoxville. I'm glad about that. I think that Kroger was getting complacent around here. They are going to dig in their heels, though. That's why they are almost doubling their space across from Northshore Town Center.

I still say to watch the Ingle's in Farragut. I bet that is the first to go.

You really hit on several good points that have been largely ignored in 30-some pages over this thread. There has been a lot made over Food City vs. Publix in Knoxville earlier but Publix has really been targeting Kroger neighborhoods and that's a really smart move. Kroger has always led Knoxville in market share. Florida and Georgia transplants to Knoxville have traditionally been more familiar with Kroger and shopped there. Nobody "loves" Kroger either. I always looked for Publix to effect all grocers, but Kroger most. Kroger is the largest grocer in America though and they have deep pockets.

I would also expect Ingles to go in Farragut, also the Food City in Mechanicsville (it's been notoriously underperforming for a while already) after University Commons opens. JMT mentioned Kroger's new store in Powell, and it's worth mentioning Food City has also announced a new store in Powell as well so Ingles there may be in trouble. I don't see Ingles being driven out in Knox Co though. Ingles supplies stores out of Asheville, NC and Ingles trucks will continue to drive through Knox so it would only make sense that they close unprofitable stores but hold onto the rest. I don't see Food City being driven out either. True they're a smaller chain and Knoxville is their only metro market but they'll likely do the same thing as Ingles and close money-losing stores and focus on the rest. Food City does have a more devoted niche of followers and does a number of things right and different than the national chains such as local produce and bringing back traditional Knoxville labels like Kay's and Kern's and producing them locally. They're really the closest we have to a local chain left. Rural East Tennesseans that move to Knoxville tend to gravitate there as it's the only chain they're familiar with. Food City has traditionally expanded slowly to keep a low debt and not jeopardize the chain. It may be inevitable decades from now, but the city in general would lose a valuable asset if it becomes dominated by a few national chains as Walmart, Kroger, and Publix which are all in the top 5 largest national grocery chains. More options are better and I don't see the city gaining anything but higher unemployment rates by losing Ingles or Food City.

Publix's Knoxville's expansion will be significantly slowed by the fact they are targeting Charlotte as well. They really don't even have their normal build-out in Chattanooga yet and several Food Lions have gone out of business to leave a gap to be filled. I actually look for them to focus on Charlotte for a while before looking at Knoxville or Chattanooga again. The Charlotte market is seen as integral to the company for a future in North Carolina whereas Publix is now accessible to Tennessee metro area and it's a matter of how many stores. They know some people will drive across a metro county for a while.

[weisgarber1]

Originally Posted by Trevor92

You really hit on several good points that have been largely ignored in 30-some pages over this thread. There has been a lot made over Food City vs. Publix in Knoxville earlier but Publix has really been targeting Kroger neighborhoods and that's a really smart move. Kroger has always led Knoxville in market share. Florida and Georgia transplants to Knoxville have traditionally been more familiar with Kroger and shopped there. Nobody "loves" Kroger either. I always looked for Publix to effect all grocers, but Kroger most. Kroger is the largest grocer in America though and they have deep pockets.

I would also expect Ingles to go in Farragut, also the Food City in Mechanicsville (it's been notoriously underperforming for a while already) after University Commons opens. JMT mentioned Kroger's new store in Powell, and it's worth mentioning Food City has also announced a new store in Powell as well so Ingles there may be in trouble. I don't see Ingles being driven out in Knox Co though. Ingles supplies stores out of Asheville, NC and Ingles trucks will continue to drive through Knox so it would only make sense that they close unprofitable stores but hold onto the rest. I don't see Food City being driven out either. True they're a smaller chain and Knoxville is their only metro market but they'll likely do the same thing as Ingles and close money-losing stores and focus on the rest. Food City does have a more devoted niche of followers and does a number of things right and different than the national chains such as local produce and bringing back traditional Knoxville labels like Kay's and Kern's and producing them locally. They're really the closest we have to a local chain left. Rural East Tennesseans that move to Knoxville tend to gravitate there as it's the only chain they're familiar with. Food City has traditionally expanded slowly to keep a low debt and not jeopardize the chain. It may be inevitable decades from now, but the city in general would lose a valuable asset if it becomes dominated by a few national chains as Walmart, Kroger, and Publix which are all in the top 5 largest national grocery chains. More options are better and I don't see the city gaining anything but higher unemployment rates by losing Ingles or Food City.

Publix's Knoxville's expansion will be significantly slowed by the fact they are targeting Charlotte as well. They really don't even have their normal build-out in Chattanooga yet and several Food Lions have gone out of business to leave a gap to be filled. I actually look for them to focus on Charlotte for a while before looking at Knoxville or Chattanooga again. The Charlotte market is seen as integral to the company for a future in North Carolina whereas Publix is now accessible to Tennessee metro area and it's a matter of how many stores. They know some people will drive across a metro county for a while.

There are several rural markets that are underserved by supermarket chains, or not served at all, and that seems to be where the biggest opportunity is for both Food City and Ingles. Whether either chain sees that and has it in their expansion plans, or recognizes it down the road, remains to be seen. But, both can survive in niche markets that Kroger, Publix, and Wally (slightly different with Wally) won't touch or enter.

[Carolina Knight]

I see some discussion about Ingle's leaving the Knoxville market with Publix's entrance. When chains with more presence locate in more populated areas, Ingle's extends out to smaller towns. While that thought works for Ingle's, not being aggressive in adding stores head on against larger presence chains will hurt.

Publix has growth going in three directions--Alabama, North Carolina and Tennessee. With the Charlotte Division in operation, could a Tennessee-based division be in the works?

[creeksitter]

Krogers is still my go-to store for basics but I spend a lot less $$ as my eating habits have changed. Milk and bulk goods (beans, oatmeal etc) come from 3 rivers market - as does some produce. Bread comes from the farmers market or "The Market" in Maryville. Food City is the go-to place for Amish Chicken and year round Turkey sales. On the other end of the healthy eating spectrum they are much cheaper than Krogers for birthday cakes. Plus they have an affordable line of organic canned goods that they integrate into the store so you can make an instant comparison - how much extra am I paying for organic? As opposed to an overpriced organic boutique - Krogers.

Then there are the occasional forays to Trader Joe's and Aldi. Very interesting how Aldi's can be so much cheaper on the exact same item.

I went to Publix once and probably won't again until it opens downtown. Hard to say if I'll be a regular customer. I'm a bit pissed at Publix for not supporting a decent wage for tomato pickers.

[jabogitlu]

Kroger has its own organic brand (lots of canned and packaged goods), not just 'boutiques.' Maybe you've not been in a while.

I see Kroger stepping up its game across TN. They are making strategic land purchases in Memphis, probably banking on the future (5-10 years out) that Publix will be here, too.