Out with Food Lion, in with Weis

Makeover expected for most stores by later this fall

Weis Markets Inc., a Mid-Atlantic food retailer, announced last week it has reached a definitive agreement with Food Lion LLC to purchase the assets of 38 Food Lion supermarket locations operating in the states of Maryland, Virginia and Delaware. The purchase includes a La Plata store and three in Prince George’s County — Accokeek, Mitchellville and Upper Marlboro.

“This transaction provides us the opportunity to expand into markets that are contiguous to our current trade area, particularly in Maryland where we are adding 21 stores — essentially doubling our store count in a state where we have steadily grown in recent years,” Weis Markets Chairman, President and CEO Jonathan Weis said in a release. “We’re also looking forward to expanding our operations into two adjacent states with the addition of 13 stores in Virginia and four in Delaware.”

The sale of the Food Lion stores was made necessary as part of a larger move earlier this summer when Food Lion’s parent company, the Belgian headquartered Delhaize, and Giant’s Dutch parent, Royal Ahold, completed a $29 billion merger creating Ahold Delhaize. The Federal Trade Commission ruled that for competitive reasons, the new European company would need to sell some of its Food Lion stores that were in close proximity to Giant supermarkets.

Weis Markets expects to complete the conversion process for the majority of these stores in September and October and is interested in hiring current Food Lion store teams for the purchased locations, according to the release.

“We look forward to interviewing and hiring team members who share our commitment to offering an industry-leading combination of value, quality and customer service,” Weis said. The company plans to complete the purchase of these locations pending regulatory approval.

Other locations in Southern Maryland include California, Callaway, Lexington Park, Lusby, Prince Frederick and Solomons.

For more information on Weis Markets, go to WeisMarkets.com.

STAFF PHOTO BY DARWIN WEIGEL The La Plata Food Lion is one of the 38 locations that is being purchased by Weis Markets of Sunbury, Pa. The transition to the new owners is expected later this year.