By George Anderson
Food Lion knows that one size doesn't fit all and the chain is remodeling stores in Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia to better reflect the customers each unit is looking to serve.
The company is switching over a number of Food Lion locations to either its Bloom or Bottom Dollar format stores.
Jeffery Lowrance, corporate communications manager for Food Lion said both formats - Bloom serving a more upscale consumer and Bottom Dollar attracting value shoppers - have an increased focus on fresh foods. "We added new product offerings and stores got new décor packages," he told the Business Gazette.
Terri Maloney, editor of Food World, discussed the factors behind Food Lion's remodels.
"I think what we observed the last several years is that Food Lion existed on their business model of everyday low prices. They hadn't penetrated the market (Baltimore/Washington) a whole lot and they found that the vanilla approach was not working."
A factor behind Food Lion's remodels, said Ms. Maloney, is the advancement of supercenters in the markets the chain serves.
"Food Lion couldn't continue being the low price place to shop," she said. "Food Lion might couch [their reasons] that way, but I don't think it's coincidence. We do a market survey, and they've struggled in the Baltimore/Washington market."
Another competitor making waves in the greater Washington area is Wegmans. The chain has been moving into the area with the positive response of consumers typical in other locations where it has opened stores.
Food Lion is looking to its Bloom format to take on Wegmans in higher income areas although Ms. Maloney is somewhat dubious about the format's prospects against such a high-powered competitor.
"I can't imagine Food Lion being able to quite deliver what Wegmans offers," she said.
Discussion Questions: What has the expansion of the formats it operates done for Food Lion? What is your assessment of the Bloom and/or Bottom Dollar operations?