Roundy's Supermarkets (Roundy's) is a supermarket chain with 166 stores and 99 pharmacies in Wisconsin and Illinois. Based on fiscal year 2012 sales, Roundy's was the 37th largest grocery store chain and the 89th largest retailer in the United States. As of December 2015, Roundy's became a subsidiary of Kroger of Cincinnati, Ohio.
Roundy's operates under the banners of Pick 'n Save (throughout Wisconsin, beginning in 1975), Copps Food Center (in northern Wisconsin and the Madison areas, beginning in 2001), Metro Market (in the Milwaukee and Madison areas), and Mariano's Fresh Market (in the Chicago metropolitan area, beginning in 2010).
Roundy's operates food production facilities in Kenosha, Wisconsin and other locations, and has two main distribution centers, in Mazomanie and Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.
The company began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on February 8, 2012, and ceased trading on December 18, 2015, when it became a subsidiary of The Kroger Company.
History
The company was founded in 1872 in Milwaukee as Smith, Roundy & Co. by William E. Smith, Judson Roundy and Sidney Hauxhurst. Over the years it has also operated as the Roundy, Peckham & Co. and Roundy, Peckham & Dexter Co.
Roundy's was a major warehouse distributor to non-company supermarkets, including IGA, but it moved out of the wholesale market to focus on retail.
The Pick 'n Save chain, which was the backbone and propellant for growth and sale of the company in 2002, was the progeny of two Kroger-educated marketers, Vincent R. Little and Michael D. McGee, the "fathers of Pick 'n Save," who came up through the ranks at the Kroger Company.
Roundy's saw rapid growth during the John Dickson years. The reins were handed to Gerald F. Lestina, when Dickson became sick. On Lestina's watch, a period of 7 years, the company built only one corporate store, at the fairgrounds in Oshkosh, Wisconsin; that store was later sold to a director, George E. Prescott, for approximately $1.1 million.
Roundy's was taken private in 2002 through purchase by the Chicago private-equity firm Willis Stein & Partners. A strong effort was made in 2007 to sell Roundy's, but because of softness in the credit markets, there were no takers.
Roundy's took the company public via IPO in 2012, posting an initial share price of $8.50 per share.
Beginning in 2002, the CEO of the corporation was Robert "Chairman Bob" Mariano, who had been the CEO of Dominick's prior to Dominick's sale to Safeway in 1998. Most of Mariano's senior staff at Roundy's held the same positions with Mariano at Dominick's.
Mariano initiated the creation of a Chicago-based supermarket division, called Mariano's, focused on creating upscale multi-department food stores. The first Mariano's branded store opened in Arlington Heights, Illinois in July, 2010.
On December 2, 2013, Roundy's and Mariano announced it would purchase 11 Dominick's stores to rebrand them as Mariano's, after Safeway finished closing the chain early in 2014.
On November 11, 2015, Roundy's announced its merger with the Kroger Company, a deal valued at $800 million including debt, which was completed on December 18, 2015. Following completion of the merger, Roundy's operates as a subsidiary of Kroger, retaining its headquarters in Milwaukee. It was suggested that Kroger primarily was interested in the Mariano's division, as Kroger had not been active in the Chicago market, and normally the company isn't interested in acquiring chains in financial difficulty--the Roundy's divisions in Wisconsin had been in decline.
The sale of Roundy's to Cincinnati-based Kroger, about two years after Safeway shut down its Chicago-based Dominick's supermarket chain, selling many of the stores to other operators, was a matter discussed in the regional business press.
CEO Bob Mariano retired on September 1, 2016.
Production, distribution, and retail
Roundy's operates food production facilities in Kenosha, Wisconsin and other locations, and has two main distribution centers located in Mazomanie, and Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.
As of July 2017, Roundy's operates stores under four distinct banners: Pick 'n Save (throughout Wisconsin, beginning in 1975), Copps Food Center (in northern Wisconsin and the Madison areas, beginning in 2001), Metro Market (in the Milwaukee and Madison areas), and Mariano's Fresh Market (in the Chicago metropolitan area, beginning in 2010). Pick 'n Save and Copps are practically identical in merchandising style and strategy, with Copps confined to northeastern and north-central Wisconsin markets. Metro Market and Mariano's offer more urban-upscale product offerings, with modern fixtures and amenities.
Competition
As well as differing geographically, competitors to the Roundy's chains will differ, depending on which of the banners described above are considered.
References
Further reading
- York, Emily Bryson (February 11, 2013). "Former Dominick's CEO Opening More Grocery Stores Here". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 10, 2017.Â
External links
- Official website
