Save a Lot sold six company-owned stores in Dallas, Texas, and Jacksonville, Florida, to Yellow Banana, LLC as part of Save a Lot’s ongoing efforts to convert corporate-owned stores to local ownership.
According to the company, Yellow Banana’s acquisition will enable these six stores to remain open, providing critical support to both the communities in question and the nearly 100 store associates employed.
This news follows Yellow Banana’s September 2021 purchase of 32 Save a Lot stores in the Cleveland, Chicago, and Milwaukee metropolitan areas. It brings Yellow Banana’s total Save a Lot store count to 38 stores in five states. The new locations now operating under Yellow Banana’s ownership in Texas and Florida include:
Texas: 3021 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Dallas; 2611 South Lancaster Road, Dallas.
Florida: 762 Edgewood Avenue North, Jacksonville; 5276 Blanding Boulevard, Jacksonville; 8000 Lem Turner Road, Jacksonville; 5995 University Boulevard, Jacksonville.
Related Article: Save A Lot Plans to Modernize All its 1,000 Stores by 2024
“We are excited to deepen our strong relationship with Save a Lot and to expand our mission of tackling food deserts across the United States, through this extension of Yellow Banana’s operations into the promising Texas and Florida markets,” said Yellow Banana President Ademola Adewale-Sadik.
Yellow Banana is owned by 127 Wall Holdings, LLC, co-founded by Walker Brumskine, Ademola Adewale-Sadik, and Michael Nance. The three met while earning JDs from Yale Law School; Brumskine and Adewale-Sadik also earned MBAs from Harvard Business School. They are joined by seasoned operator and 127 Wall co-founder Joseph Canfield.
“The Yellow Banana team has great confidence in the Save a Lot brand and format, and we look forward to delivering affordable, high-quality food to working families in the important Southern cities of Dallas and Jacksonville,” said its CEO Joseph Canfield.
Yellow Banana intends to employ nearly 100 associates at the six stores and maintain their current wages, health insurance, and retirement benefits. The retail grocery platform also plans to expand each store’s assortment of local and regional products and hire talent from local communities.
Each of the stores will undergo a significant remodel in 2022 to entirely reflect Save a Lot’s updated brand image. This will deliver an enhanced shopping environment both inside and outside the stores, including new décor, upgraded flooring, lighting, and updated produce and meat cases.
“We are delighted that Yellow Banana is growing its Save a Lot store count,” said Tim Schroder, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at Save a Lot. “Their clear commitment to connecting the business to the local community and appetite for growing the business will ensure Save a Lot continues to serve customers for years to come.”