Will your Winn-Dixie card work when Aldi takes over? What the deal means for shoppers

Howard Cohen
·6 min read
22

Aldi is about to swallow Winn-Dixie — and that will mean some changes for customers.

The discount grocery chain Aldi, with a growing presence in South Florida, announced Wednesday that it plans to acquire the more traditional Winn-Dixie and its larger supermarkets from Jacksonville-based Southeastern Grocers.

In the deal, Aldi also is acquiring Harveys, another Southeastern chain with stores in Jacksonville, Winter Haven, Lake City, Ocala and Lakeland.

Southeastern Grocers also operates 28 Fresco y Más stores, Hispanic-flavored markets primarily in South Florida. Aldi didn’t acquire these stores, and the ownership will transfer to an investment group’s leadership.

The deal is expected to close in early 2024.

But how will this affect you, the shopper?

You have questions. We have some answers.

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What will happen to Winn-Dixie stores?

Winn-Dixie added curbside pickup service to 300 stores, including those in South Florida in February 2023.
Winn-Dixie added curbside pickup service to 300 stores, including those in South Florida in February 2023.

Winn-Dixie has had a familiar red and white storefront design and logo for decades. The Germany-based Aldi said it would keep the Winn-Dixie name on about 400 Winn Dixie and Harveys supermarkets that it’s buying in Florida, with an unspecified number facing conversion. Most Winn-Dixie supermarkets, about 75%, are in Florida, with others in Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.

About 40 Winn-Dixie and 50 Aldi grocery stores dot South Florida. The collections includes three Winn-Dixie supermarkets in the Keys — Key West, Big Pine Key and Key Largo. Aldi continues to expand, including a location that opened in Miami in June in the Coconut Grove area.

Will Winn-Dixie stores become Aldi stores?

Some Winn-Dixie locations will be transformed into Aldi stores, according to the company.

“We are evaluating which locations will convert to the Aldi format to better support the neighborhoods we’ll now have the privilege of serving,” CEO Jason Hart said in a statement to the Miami Herald. “For those stores we do not convert, our intention is that these continue to operate as Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket stores.”

Hart told CNN a “significant amount” of Winn-Dixie stores will convert to the Aldi format.

That could mean a different product mix or design for Aldi. The stores are sized differently. Aldi stores average around 22,000 square feet. Winn-Dixie’s stores are much larger, averaging around 48,000 square feet, according to industry newsletter Grocery Dive. Aldi has several options, including subleasing space inside converted Winn-Dixie stores.

Will your groceries be bagged at the register?

One way Aldi cuts costs is bagging. Or rather, not bagging. You do it yourself at Aldi and also pay a deposit to use a shopping cart. At converted Winn-Dixie stores in 2024, expect the Aldi experience. The company hasn’t said what will happen at stores operating under the Winn-Dixie banner in 2024 and beyond.

Will your Winn-Dixie loyalty card still work?

This is an Aldi discount market in the Coral Reef Shopping Center at 15033 S. Dixie Highway in Palmetto Bay in December 2022.
This is an Aldi discount market in the Coral Reef Shopping Center at 15033 S. Dixie Highway in Palmetto Bay in December 2022.

Winn-Dixie rewards, like the loyalty cards that allow customers to swipe at registers for buy-one-get-one offers, or its points system on the app that can yield free grocery items, will still work. For now.

But what about loyalty cards still working at Winn-Dixie in 2024? An Aldi spokesperson said in email responses to Miami Herald questions about the transition: “Aldi and Southeastern Grocers will continue to operate independently until the transaction closes. We will share more information as it becomes available following the finalization of the transaction, which we expect to be in the first half of 2024.”

What happens to Winn-Dixie brands?

Grocery retailers like Florida-based Southeastern Grocers and Publix market their own products like these branded frozen fruit packages, as well as breads and other foods and household supplies. Aldi also sells its own product line.
Grocery retailers like Florida-based Southeastern Grocers and Publix market their own products like these branded frozen fruit packages, as well as breads and other foods and household supplies. Aldi also sells its own product line.

Will Aldi add or swap in its private label products to surviving Winn-Dixie stores?

“Aldi and Southeastern Grocers will continue to operate independently until the transaction closes,” Aldi’s spokesperson said. After the transition in 2024, expect Aldi products in the converted Winn-Dixie locations.

What happens to Fresco y Más?

The Fresco y Mas at the TJ Maxx Plaza at 7480 SW 117th Ave. in Kendall on Dec. 16, 2022.
The Fresco y Mas at the TJ Maxx Plaza at 7480 SW 117th Ave. in Kendall on Dec. 16, 2022.

Southeastern operates 28 Fresco y Más Hispanic-themed grocery stores, mainly in South Florida, and four of its pharmacies. Aldi agreed to acquire Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket, but not Fresco y Más. Southeastern is selling Fresco y Más to Fresco Retail Group LLC, an investment group.

Customers in South Florida where Fresco y Más serves several communities — including Hialeah, Homestead, Kendall, Hollywood and Lauderhill — can give a sunshine smile to match the yellow store frontage if they like the Fresco shopping experience.

According to Business Wire, “Fresco Retail Group plans for all stores and pharmacies in the Fresco y Más banner to continue operating as they are presently.”

When will Florida customers notice the difference?

An Aldi interior press photo from Terre Haute.
An Aldi interior press photo from Terre Haute.

Customers will start to see changes a few months before Taylor Swift brings The Eras Tour to Miami Gardens in October 2024 and the U.S. presidential election in November that year.

According to Aldi’s spokesperson, “We will share more information as it becomes available following the finalization of the transaction, which we expect to be in the first half of 2024.”

Anthony Hucker, CEO of Southeastern Grocers, said in a statement that its “transformational journey” with Winn-Dixie has led to an opportunity for Aldi to add Winn-Dixie to its portfolio. He said Southeastern and Aldi share a customer value commitment and have similar operating visions.

Will prices rise at Aldi and Winn-Dixie?

Aldi’s L’Oven Fresh brand bread was 95 cents a loaf on Dec. 12, 2022.
Aldi’s L’Oven Fresh brand bread was 95 cents a loaf on Dec. 12, 2022.

Often, in mergers and acquisitions, prices go up because of fewer competitors. Aldi’s spokesperson acknowledged the rising cost of food across the board but declined to say whether the transaction in Winn-Dixie’s home state would affect Aldi or Winn-Dixie pricing in Florida.

What the spokesperson did say is that Aldi helps “residents in the Southeast save up to 40% on their grocery bills. Aldi is committed to offering great products at the lowest possible prices, every day.

“This acquisition is an opportunity to continue the growth we already had planned for the region as part of our strategic and deliberate national expansion,” Aldi’s spokesperson said.

At the time of the Aldi-Southeastern Grocers announcement in August, Aldi had 209 stores in Florida. Eight more are expected by the end of 2023 in the state, according to the company.

What does Southeastern Grocers have to say?

The Winn-Dixie at 8710 SW 72nd St. in a Kendall-area neighborhood off Sunset Drive in Miami had been closed since July 2022 due to roof damage, parent company Southeastern Grocers said. The shuttered store in a strip mall is pictured here on Feb. 20, 2023, reopened with a refreshed decor on July 12, 2023.
The Winn-Dixie at 8710 SW 72nd St. in a Kendall-area neighborhood off Sunset Drive in Miami had been closed since July 2022 due to roof damage, parent company Southeastern Grocers said. The shuttered store in a strip mall is pictured here on Feb. 20, 2023, reopened with a refreshed decor on July 12, 2023.

Winn-Dixie’s predecessor established its headquarters in Jacksonville in 1944 and began operating under the Winn-Dixie name in 1955, Jacksonville Daily Record reported.

In 2012, Winn-Dixie became a subsidiary of Southeastern Grocers and kept its Jacksonville base.

On Wednesday, Meredith Hurley, Southeastern Grocers’ senior director of communications, told the Miami Herald in a statement:

“We understand this news surely raises questions, however we cannot comment or speculate on any forward-looking strategies or initiatives at this time. For customers, nothing changes today,” Hurley said.

“Southeastern Grocers will continue to offer customers the same great savings, benefits and programs to deliver an excellent shopping experience and value for our customers as we remain committed to conducting business as usual until closing,” she said. “More information will be shared on future plans as it’s available.”