Kroger will stop grocery deliveries in the Miami area. Here’s what you need to know
In a terse announcement to its membership group, Kroger told its customers it was closing three of the company’s delivery facilities, including the deliveryfulfillment center that opened in June 2022 in Opa-locka amid much fanfare.
The move ends the grocery giant’s initial foray into the South Florida market as a competitor to Florida’s market leader Publix, Walmart, Amazon, membership programs such as Costco and BJ’s, and discount grocer Aldi — which recently absorbed Jacksonville’s Winn-Dixie.
Kroger’s Florida operations were exclusively as an online grocer with hubs in Central Florida’s Groveland, Tampa, Jacksonville, Cocoa Beach and Opalocka’s 60,000-square-foot distribution center. These hubs, or “spokes” as Kroger calls them, delivered groceries via a fleet of blue trucks with the familiar Kroger logo.
“We do not make these decisions lightly, and we understand the impact this has on associates, customers and communities,” Kroger said in its announcement to Boost members on Tuesday. “Despite our best efforts, including the support from new customers, learnings from other locations and the incredible work of our associates, these facilities did not meet the benchmarks we set for success.”
Kroger spokeswoman Krystal Diaz said something similar in a response to a Miami Herald inquiry.
“Kroger’s commitment to innovation means that we test and learn quickly to identify the most effective ways to deliver fresh, affordable food to our customers,” she said in an email, repeating the message that “the South Florida spoke facility did not meet the benchmarks we set for success.”
WHERE IS KROGER CLOSING?
The closures are on May 25, about two years after the South Florida site opened, marking the grocer giant’s first venture into Florida. In addition to the Miami-area delivery facility, the Austin and San Antonio “spokes” are closing in Texas.
The delivery center’s employees will also lose their jobs at the end of May, the company said. In June 2022, when Kroger announced the opening of its Opa-locka facility, the company said it expected to employ 200 there. As of Tuesday’s announcement, the South Florida delivery center employed 109, said Kroger’s E-Commerce spokeswoman, April Martin.
Kroger’s other automated fulfillment centers or crossdocking spoke locations in Florida — including the Groveland Fulfillment Center and Tampa, Jacksonville and Cocoa Beach hubs — are not closing and remain operational, Diaz said.
WHAT IF YOU ARE IN KROGER’S MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM?
Boost members, who pay a $59 annual fee to get free deliveries in a 90-mile radius from delivery centers for a year on orders of $35 or more, will receive a full refund of their membership fee within the next 30 days, Kroger announced. The refund will automatically be applied to the card that members use when signing up for the program.
The Cincinnati-based Kroger is the nation’s top traditional grocery chain, operating more than 2,700 stores and is second only to mass merchant Walmart in terms of grocery sales nationwide, according to trade group, Foodindustry.com.
Kroger reported $148 billion in revenue and an operating profit of $3.1 billion for fiscal year 2023. Florida’s top grocery chain, the Lakeland-based Publix, ranked No. 6 on Foodindustry’s November survey.