Kroger launches a new fresh food concept

Dec 21, 2015, 3:04pm EST Updated Dec 22, 2015, 11:38am EST

Steve WatkinsStaff ReporterCincinnati Business Courier

Kroger Co. is about to open a new store brand focused on fresh produce, food preparation advice and high-quality prepared foods.

It will open its first Main & Vine shop in the Seattle-area town of Gig Harbor, Wash. Cincinnati-based Kroger, the nation’s largest operator of traditional supermarkets, already runs Quality Food Center and Fred Meyer supermarkets in the Seattle area.

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Kroger is expanding its existing organic offerings with its newest store concept.

COURTESY | KROGER

Kroger (NYSE: KR) said on its Main & Vine website that the store is opening soon. It said in a promotional email that it’s “counting down the days” until the store opens.

The store will offer customers “fresh, affordable” local produce and meat and local craft beer and wine. It will feature plenty of fresh food – some of it already prepared – that it describes as “unique culinary experiences and taste adventures, with tasty meals made fresh in our kitchen.”

It could also offer home delivery services, something Kroger has experimented with on a limited basis in the past.

Kroger isn’t talking much about the new concept now. That’s not surprising. It often tests new ideas in a single market before rolling them out more broadly if they’re successful. And until it reaches that point, it’s often fairly closed-mouthed.

Kroger spokesman Keith Dailey said the only information he could share now is: “We are always testing new innovations and concepts for our customers.”

Kroger had 119 supermarkets in Washington state at year-end, making it the 11th-largest state in its chain. It has 2,774 stores around the country.

Kroger just received final federal government approval for its trademark of Main & Vine on Nov. 26, according to federal records.

That application lists Main & Vine’s business services as including “retail grocery store and online grocery store services with in-store pickup or home delivery.” It listed natural and organic foods and fresh foods. It also included numerous categories included in typical grocery store merchandise, likely as a way to cover its bases regardless of what it offers.

The store appears to be a small format that could work in an urban environment. That’s an area Kroger has focused on lately with the just-completed acquisition of Milwaukee-based supermarket operator Roundy’s Inc. It added the urban-format Mariano’s stores in the Chicago area with that deal. Kroger CFO Mike Schlotman said when Kroger announced that deal that Kroger could use Mariano’s expertise to add urban-format stores in markets around the country, listing Cincinnati as an example.