Albertsons in Menifee Will Be Going Out of Business

Sad, but true. Albertson's Grocery Store in Menifee, on the corner of Newport and Murrieta Rds, will be closing up at end of this February.

SuperValu, Inc., the company that owns Albertsons, issued a press release yesterday citing company goals not being met...

ALBERTSONS strives to ensure the success of all its stores, however, it is occasionally necessary to close those that are not meeting company goals in today’s competitive and difficult economic environment. While the decision to close a store is difficult—given the impact on associates and customers—ALBERTSONS has a responsibility to do what is best for the long-term growth and success of the company as a whole.

The Sav-on Pharmacy inside the store will actually close much earlier, on January 18th. All prescription files will be transferred to nearby competing pharmacies. A sign will be posted at the pharmacy counter regarding this.

As for what will become of the employees who work at Albertsons, some of them will be absorbed into other Albertsons nearby, while others will be laid off, all of which to be determined by seniority.

The people who work inside the Wells Fargo bank branch seemed to be breathing easily however. I asked a teller what would become of their jobs, and was told their jobs are all secure and will be transitioned to other branches.

And what of the Starbucks inside Albertsons? Those workers are actually Albertsons employees. They'll either be transferred or laid off by seniority, going into whatever positions are available.

Albertsons is what is known as the "anchor store" for Sun City Plaza, the shopping center it's located in. Much of the other stores there rely on Albertsons traffic for their own business.

The Smoke Shop, located immediately next door to Albertsons, does most of its advertising in the Pennysaver, but otherwise relies on Albertsons shoppers for visibility. The woman working behind the counter there seemed disappointed. "All of the businesses in Sun City Plaza are hurting right now with the bad economy" she told me. "It's going to hurt even more when Albertsons goes away."

As for what will take Albertsons place once they vacate? No one seems to know right now. Some of the employees I talked to said no one knew. Albertsons actually owns that building, and based on what employees mentioned to me, the store had tried to find a buyer but had no luck.