Smart & Final debuts hybrid grocery store concept in Denver
Source: The Denver Post
Part warehouse grocery, part conventional supermarket. That’s what customers will experience at SmartCo Foods, a new chain that opened the first of its five Denver-area stores Tuesday.
SmartCo is pitching an all-things-to-all-shoppers approach that analysts say could prove popular — if the chain can establish its identity in Colorado’s competitive grocery industry.
Parent company Smart & Final of City of Commerce, Calif., acquired five metro-Denver sites formerly occupied by Albertsons. In addition to the newly opened store at 1442 S. Parker Road, outlets in Denver, Centennial, Littleton and Longmont will launch in July and August.
Smart & Final has built a reputation in California and other Western states primarily as a warehouse discounter that caters to food-service customers who buy in bulk. SmartCo stores will add a conventional supermarket element with regular-size items, fresh produce, bakeries, meat departments and delis.
