US: H-E-B exploring small-format stores
Observers told SN several H-E-B executives plan to travel to Canada later this month, though they declined to indicate with whom they would meet.
However, they said the company is looking for insights on the right merchandise mix in stores of about 12,000 square feet to compete with Walmart Neighborhood Markets. SN previously reported that H-E-B hopes to open a small-format store in downtown San Antonio.
The size of most H-E-B stores is in the range of 80,000 square feet to 99,000 square feet, though the company also operates a handful of 26,000-square-foot Pantry Markets in the Houston area — a store group it acquired more than a decade ago from Food Lion.
Source: supermarketnews.com
