By Brett Dworski
Source: C-Store Dive
Kroger sent shock waves through the grocery and retail industries when it agreed to acquire rival Albertsons for over $24 billion earlier this month. If approved, the merger would create a supermarket chain of immense size and scale that can compete with the non-grocery competitors like Walmart, Amazon and Dollar General that continually pressure the industry.
But the acquisition has major implications for the c-store and fuel industries, too.
A little-discussed aspect of the deal is the fact that a combined Kroger and Albertsons would operate over 2,000 fueling centers nationwide, with a market share that’s on par with 7-Eleven and Circle K, Fred Rozell, president of price-reporting agency Oil Price Information Service (OPIS), said in an interview.
