Shaw’s parent company to sell grocery chain

LONDON – British supermarket chain J. Sainsbury PLC said Friday it had agreed to sell its U.S. business, which includes the Shaw’s supermarket chain, to grocery operator Albertson’s Inc. for more than $2.1 billion.

Sainsbury’s U.S. subsidiary, which operates under the Shaw’s and Star Markets brands, has 202 stores, largely in New England.

Shaw’s traces its roots to the first George C. Shaw store, which opened in Portland, Maine, in 1860. The chain has 20 stores with more than 3,100 employees in Maine, where it goes head-to-head with Hannaford, a unit of Belgian-based Delhaize.

Company officials said Shaw’s and Star Markets will retain their names and private-label products after the acquisition is complete. Shaw’s will be an operating division of Albertson’s with headquarters in West Bridgewater, Mass.

Albertson’s, based in Boise, Idaho, operates 2,300 outlets in 31 U.S. states. Its stores operate under the names Albertsons, Jewel, Acme, Osco Drugs, Sav-on Drugs and Super Saver. It bills itself as the No. 2 U.S. supermarket chain, behind Kroger, based on annual sales.

It said the acquisition would increase its presence to more than 2,500 stores in 37 states.

In addition to the $2.1 billion it is paying for the stores, Albertson’s said the deal calls for it to assume about $368 million in leases.

Sainsbury said it would return about a third of the proceeds from the sale to its shareholders and use the rest to develop its core British retail business.

The parties said they hoped to complete the deal in the second quarter.