Grocery Outlet opening in Chula Vista
A grand opening party will follow on Oct. 4.
The company, which passes savings on to customers by buying surplus food and household goods, is opening its newest store on Third Avenue in Chula Vista, in what used to be Seafood City before it was a Foodland Mercado. Foodland closed about two months ago.
San Diego is one of the fastest-growing markets for Grocery Outlet, which was founded in 1946 and has more than 200 stores in six Western states.
Its independently operated stores are especially popular with "treasure" hunters, bargain shoppers and consumers who have high-end palates but tight budgets.
Grocery Outlet's principal owner, Berkshire Partners, signed papers earlier this week to sell the Berkeley, Calif. company to San Francisco-based private equity firm Hellman & Friedman.
Details of the deal were not disclosed.
The closely held company does not publish its sales figures, but retail data firm Kantar Retail estimates Grocery Outlet had $1.3 billion in sales in 2012.
The expansion into Chula Vista is one of 16 new Grocery Outlet stores scheduled to open this year.
source: utsandiego.com
