THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, April 30, 1996 TAG: 9604300428
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEPHANIE STOUGHTON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 50 lines
Winn-Dixie Stores Inc., the supermarket giant that retreated from the South Hampton Roads market a decade ago, is considering a return.
``We're looking at this market,'' said Ivan Hardesty, a marketing director in Winn-Dixie's Raleigh division. ``I don't know that we've got anything firm at this point.''
Hardesty declined to mention specific sites, but real estate sources said Winn-Dixie has been looking at locations across South Hampton Roads, including one in Virginia Beach's Hilltop area.
In the past two years, the Jacksonville, Fla.-based chain has opened its large, full-service grocery stores in Williamsburg, the Middle Peninsula's Gloucester County and Northern Neck's Kilmarnock. It is building another supermarket in Newport News.
The newest grocery stores - dubbed Winn-Dixie Marketplaces - include more extras like banks, pharmacies, seafood sections, dining areas and ready-to-eat meals.
``This is the direction our company is headed - more towards the one-stop shopping concept,'' Hardesty said.
Winn-Dixie officials acknowledge that the competition is heating up in the area. Already, newcomers like Maine-based Hannaford Brothers Co. and North Carolina's Harris Teeter Inc. are staking their claims. Farm Fresh Inc., the market leader, has responded by beefing up its promotions and renovating stores.
None of that fazes Hardesty.
``Every market we operate in is very competitive,'' he said. ``Obviously, when that happens, the customer is the big winner. We just have to work harder and smarter to get that business.''
Winn-Dixie once had seven smaller stores in Hampton Roads but never managed to get more than a sliver of the market. In 1986, the company sold the stores to Norfolk-based Farm Fresh.
``We hate to leave an area like that,'' said Mickey Clerc, a Winn-Dixie spokesman. ``But if you can't operate competitive facilities, it makes it difficult.''
Things will be different if Winn-Dixie returns, Clerc said.
``Whenever we move in, we are very competitive,'' he said. by CNB