By By MICHELE GERLACH Publisher
The local Food Fair grocery store is among the 104 stores being sold to Southern Family Markets Acquisition, LLC, an affiliate of C&S Wholesale Grocers, Inc., over the next 11 months.
BI-LO/Bruno's made the announcement Tuesday afternoon.
Southern Family Markets has agreed to purchase 104 of the 426 stores currently owned by BI-LO and Bruno's. In addition, the company will sell an additional nine stores and will close three stores.
Carl Wistreich of Southern Family Markets confirmed Tuesday afternoon that the Brewton Food Fair is among the 104 stores his company is acquiring over the next 11 months.
Wistreich said he could not comment on the company's marketing plan for the local store, nor say what name the store will operate under once it is acquired.
There are 31 Alabama stores on this list of those being sold, including Food Fairs in Brewton, Atmore, Luverne, Birmingham, Prattville, Montgomery, Tarrant, Clanton, Tallassee and Thomasville; Food Wrolds in Oneonta, Fairfiled, Florence, Enterprise, Dothan, Moulton, Decatur, Troy, Scottsboro, Muscle Shoals, Guntersville, Athens, and Hamilton; and Bruno's in Dothan, Madison and Huntsville. BI-LO also is selling the Bruno's Wine and Spirits stores in Destin and San Destin.
According to the press release issued by BI-LO, the company will close its Food World stores in Adamsville, Ala., and Russellville, Ala., and its Food World Liquor Store in Panama City.
Southern Family Markets is an affiliate of C&S, a privately owned company with annual sales of more than $15.5 billion. The company is the eighth largest privately held company in the nation.
as ranked by Forbes magazine. Founded in 1918, C&S provides distribution services to grocery chains and independent stores, delivering to more than 3,500 locations from its more than 45 distribution centers in 13 states, including Alabama.