Last year when Albertsons purchased United Supermarkets in the Texas region, many frugal shoppers were excited about the prospect of the United chain becoming more like the Albertsons' stores with better sale prices, double and triple coupons being offered, and a variety of other things that could help shoppers save a little more than usual and not have to drive out of their way too much.
Well, first, as we broke here at Reality Retail & Couponing, Albertsons in Texas eliminated double coupons back in early April of 2014. It seems to be the industry trend. We did not like it, but with some solace and virtual mourning, we dealt with it.
Effective early June of 2014 and is still ongoing as we speak, the first location to be changed to an "Albertsons Market" in Abilene, Texas offered this as their sale flyer:
This effectively ends Albertsons as we know it in Texas.
The other locations to be changed over to an Albertsons/United/Unitedsons/Albernited will take place before the end of the calendar year, and also through the early part of 2015.
Here's where their United/Albertsons ad is now located: http://albertsonsmarket.com/
What does this mean for shoppers? Couponers? Extreme Couponers? You are screwed, that's what it means.
Employees at the Albertsons location in Abilene, TX have reported as much as a 60% drop in sales and numerous cashiers have reported that they "have lost a ton of customers."Also despite the promises of the new holding company that owns this chain many employees have also suffered from a dramatic cutback in hours, with many fearful of losing their jobs.
Also pending appears to be the closing of the United Supermarkets that is less than 1/4 of a mile down the road from the current "Albertsons" location with a consolidation of some variety being the inevitable endgame as it makes no practical sense to have two different stores running the same pricing and sales that close to one another, the volume of neither support it.
It would be like a Wal Mart down the block from another Wal Mart. That just doesn't happen.
This means the following will be dead in Texas: Albertsons buy 1 get 2 free meat deals, Chicken Wing and Fried Chicken deals, B1G2 fish and shrimp deals, 4/$1.00 Albertsons rolls, No more crazy 8 sales, no more Mega Deals, no more Coupon Mania. The list goes on and on.
So combine that with the ending of the double and triple coupons earlier this spring and this new United format, Albertsons for as long as it even keeps that name, will die a slow death in Texas.
Extreme Couponers lose, Couponers lose, every single customer that depended on Albertsons deals to feed their families lose, even the Albertsons employees themselves will lose. The only winners are the stockholders and management of United that despite using a broken business model that got themselves bought out, will still reel in the profits, on less sales, but profits bigger nonetheless.
This leaves, HEB, United and Wal Mart as the only true food shopping centers that people can look for deals at to shop in, and leaves United in a virtual monopoly of this market. And it will do the same as they parade themselves through the state of Texas.
The loss of Albertsons in this region is a death blow to Extreme and regular couponers all the same.
If will also effect other retailers' pricing in the area and anyone that is looking for good sales on grocery and household items.Without a true Albertsons ad to keep them honest, expect a decent percent increase for all "sale" items in this region by stores such as Target, Wal Mart , Sam's Club, CVS and Walgreens.
It is yet another win for Wal Mart, as that is where a vast majority of these displaced shoppers will go, sadly.
If this isn't Retailer's Revenge compounded with greed, then nothing is.
