Labor continues to be one of the biggest challenges facing the commonwealth’s grocers, according to Tod Griffin, executive director of the Kentucky Grocers & Convenience Store Association.
“The one constant theme is they cannot find enough workers, especially in those skilled areas such as meat cutters and drivers to transport goods,” Griffin said. “They have increased wages, but [they] report on a regular basis they struggle even attracting applications.”
He said the unemployment rate has been in the 4-5 percent range all year, with “the usual double-digit spots in eastern Kentucky where coal mining no longer dominates.”
According to IBISWorld, the employment growth rate over the five-year period 2019-24 was 0.6 percent; the national average was 1.2 percent over that time.
In an attempt to help on the labor front, the Kentucky legislature formed a Workforce Attraction and Retention Task Force, Griffin said. It is meeting during the interim legislative session to try to find ways to improve the workforce participation rate, which lags surrounding states.
Another top concern is retail crime, Griffin said. Reports are on the rise of skimmers being found on machines that process credit, debit and EBT cards. Gift card fraud is growing as well, he added, noting that a person recently was indicted by a federal grand jury for stealing more than $1 million by tampering with gift cards at grocery stores.
KGCSA has begun discussions with lawmakers on allowing wine and liquor sales in grocery and convenience stores, to include liquor-based RTDs.
As for legislation members don’t want to see, Griffin said there is concern that bills again will be filed to restrict SNAP benefits.
Industry healthy overall
Griffin said Kentucky’s economy “seems to have stabilized over the last year,” adding that the health of the grocery industry is strong overall, with new stores being built and older ones seeing renovation.
“At the same time, though, smaller, independent grocers are facing tougher times in serving customers as they try to hang on to market share, especially in areas that are underserved,” he said.
Independents often try to fill in the gaps in areas where it makes sense economically and in areas where there isn’t a heavy chain store presence, according to Griffin. “Kentucky is also seeing the proliferation of dollar stores popping up, especially in rural areas where access to a food store is difficult.”
Kentucky’s businesses employ nearly 1.9 million people, ranking it 29th, said IBISWorld.
Two of the largest grocers appear on the top 10 list of Kentucky employers: Walmart at No. 2, employing nearly 31,000, and Kroger Co. at No. 6, employing about 19,400. (Kentucky’s government is No. 1, with more than 33,000 employees.)
Walmart operates a total of 101 retail units in Kentucky, including 77 Supercenters and seven Neighborhood Markets, according to stats on the company’s website.
Kroger has 105 grocery stores across 55 cities, according to its website. But that number is about to increase. A new store is scheduled to open Sept. 12 on Ballardsville Road in Louisville and, according to a June 2024 report by WAVE News, the chain planned to break ground in August on a new 122,000-square-foot Kroger Marketplace that will include a liquor store, pharmacy, Little Clinic and gas pumps. The store is part of a multi-use development on Beulah Church Road that also features apartments, town homes and single-family homes. The Kroger is projected to open in October 2025, barring delays.
Also, a new Kroger Marketplace on Lexington’s northwest side was approved in early February. According to The Lexington Herald Leader, the store will be located at 760 Newtown Springs, adjacent to an Amazon warehouse. The 122,000-square-foot location will offer a drive-thru for the pharmacy, grocery pickup area and an adjoining wine and spirits shop.
The area where the Kroger will be built is deemed a “food desert,” the article said.
Publix presence to expand
Lakeland, Florida-based Publix Super Markets expanded into Kentucky in January of this year, marking its eighth state of operation.
The store, in Louisville’s Terra Crossing Shopping Center, is 55,701 square feet and features a drive-thru Publix Pharmacy and adjacent 3,200-square-foot Publix Liquors (the company’s first outside of Florida). Publix revealed its expansion plans in fall 2021, followed by groundbreaking for the store in June 2022.
During Publix’s groundbreaking ceremony in Louisville, Publix Super Markets Charities Executive Director Kelly Williams-Puccio and Publix CEO Todd Jones presented a $175,000 check to Dare to Care Food Bank for a mobile food pantry.
“The success of our first Publix in Kentucky is owed to our dedicated associates who consistently deliver a great shopping experience to our customers,” said Jared Glover, media relations manager for Publix. “We look forward to bringing the Publix difference to even more communities across The Bluegrass State.”
Ten additional Publix locations have been confirmed.
Next up is a location at Harris Pike and Madison Pike in Independence. The store will total 48,387 square feet and employ about 140 people. An opening timeframe has yet to be determined, Glover said. Independence is in northern Kentucky and included in the Cincinnati, Ohio, metro area.
Other confirmed locations in northern Kentucky include: Publix at Triple Crown Shopping Center, at Triple Crown Boulevard and Richwood Road in Walton; Publix at Cold Spring Pointe, at AA Highway 9 and Alexandria Pike, Cold Spring; and Publix at Farmview Commons, at U.S. 42 and Farmview Drive in Florence.
Locations planned in the Lexington area are: Publix at The Fountains at Palomar, 3901 Harrodsburg Road; Publix at Citation Point, 1952 Stockton Way; and one in the northwest quadrant of Romany and Duke roads.
Confirmed Louisville-area locations include: Publix at Flat Rock, 100 Flat Rock Road; and Publix at Marshall Commons, 10005 Ballardsville Road.
The latter store will face direct competition from Kroger’s store that is opening in September – at 10010 Ballardsville Road, across the street.
In August, Publix confirmed that it had executed a lease for its 11th store in Kentucky. This one is in Owensboro, near the Indiana border. The store, Publix at Gateway Commons, will be located at Pleasant Valley and Hayden roads. The 50,325-square-foot site will employ about 150 people.
An opening timeframe has not yet been determined, according to Glover, who added, “We are excited to continue our growth across Kentucky with our 11th location announcement in the state. We look forward to our new customers experiencing the Publix difference soon!”
Another future competitor is expected to come in the form of Hy-Vee, the Iowa-based grocer that is in the process of growing southward. In early 2022, it was announced that the chain had about about 12 acres in a retail development on Bardstown Road, with plans for a 150,000-square-foot store.
Tina Potthoff, SVP of communications for Hy-Vee, confirmed in July that the company “would eventually like to grow” via opening a store on its Louisville property.
In December, The Louisville Courier Journal reported that The Fresh Market is planning a second location in Louisville, moving into a 25,000-square-foot space in the Paddock Shops formerly filled by Barnes & Noble, which moved to a smaller space at the center.
The Fresh Market also has a store in Lexington, on Tates Creek Road.
[RELATED: Taste Of The Southeast: Why The Grocery Landscape Stands Out In This Area]
Wawa coming to town(s)
The supermarket sector is not the only retail food business growing in Kentucky. Popular Pennsylvania-based convenience store chain Wawa broke ground in early June on its first two stores. They are located at 9650 Preston Crossing Boulevard in Louisville and 3012 Lexington Road in Nicholasville and are projected to open by mid-2025. 
“We are excited to begin construction on our stores in Kentucky as we get closer to bringing the unique Wawa experience to new customers in more markets,” said Joe Collins, director of store operations for Wawa, a family- and associate-owned chain of more than 1,050 c-stores in eight states and Washington, D.C.
Wawa is known for its fresh foods program, including custom-prepared hoagies, coffee, hot breakfast sandwiches, specialty beverages, a dinner menu including burgers, and an assortment of soups, sides and snacks.
The company also expects to break ground this year on these stores:
- 4314 Bardstown Road, Louisville;
- 900 East Main Street, Georgetown; and
- 1354 Veterans Parkway, Clarksville, Indiana (Louisville market).
All told, Wawa plans to open a total of nine stores in Kentucky in 2025.
Over the next five to eight years, Wawa plans to build and open five to eight stores per year in the Louisville and Lexington areas, with plans to open up to 40 stores in Kentucky.
Wawa has more than 20 sites under contract across several counties.
To build each store, Wawa says it invests more than $7.5 million and employs, on average, 140 workers. Once open, each location employs an average of 35 people, with Wawa expecting to create almost 1,500 long-term new jobs as a result of its expansion in Kentucky.
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