Yes everyone, it's that time of year again, time to mark another Albertsons Florida Blog anniversary. It's crazy to think I've been going at this for 9 years now, but I've sure seen a lot and explored a lot of stores in that time, and learned a lot from both my travels and from all of you who read this blog and write in or comment. I've had a lot of fun over these last 9 years, and after all that time, my work isn't done yet. I still have many more posts to write in my journey to cover all of the former Albertsons stores that once dotted the Floridian landscape, so keep coming back for more in the future! This blog wouldn't be here if it weren't for all of my loyal readers, both the long timers and recent additions. Knowing people are out there reading my supermarket ramblings makes me feel this whole experience has been worth it, as it's no fun writing to yourself! So thank you all for your readership and the nearly 760,000 pageviews since the start of this project, and here's to many more years of Floridian supermarket adventures together!
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| Former Albertsons #4372 - Sarasota, FL - Covered in March 2022 |
2022 hasn't been too crazy of a year for Floridian supermarkets. Winn-Dixie has pressed on with their revitalization campaign, and seems on track to have their entire store fleet remodeled by the end of next year. Winn-Dixie has also continued with the opening of new stores as well, with next year planning to be a busy year for new store openings for that company (at least 4 new Winn-Dixie stores are planned to open sometime in 2023). Rumors of Winn-Dixie's parent company SEG potentially selling out recently appeared too, so we'll need to keep tabs on that and see what happens with those rumors as well. Next year will also mark Publix's entrance into Kentucky and the Hampton Roads region of Virginia, although Publix has continued with some very healthy expansion in their current markets in 2022 as well. Publix broke the 1,300 mark in store count this year, with that number looking to continue its upward trend as Publix's outward expansion continues. We also lost another Publixsons in 2022, the long rumored-to-be-closing Publix #1331, which occupied former Albertsons #4413 in Fort Myers. That store was brought to its demise by Hurricane Ian in September 2022, although even without the storm, Publix was planning to close it for a rebuild around the same time. The biggest grocery news of 2022 though has been the announcement of the Kroger/Albertsons merger, however, since both of those stores have virtually no presence in Florida anymore, Florida will be one of few states that will see very little effect from that big announcement. All that being said, let's see what 2023 may bring to us in the supermarket world, as that industry continues to evolve.
To wrap up this post you will find my usual recap of the year below, although keep scrolling down after that to see today's special feature post about a very special (now gone) Publixsons store (a preview of which you'll see in this next photo):
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| Former Albertsons #4413 - Fort Myers, FL - Covered December 2022 |
The Year in Review (and Some Random Stats):
Albertsons Stores Covered:
Albertsons #4302 - St. Petersburg, FL (4th Street North) (My most popular post of the year by a long shot - over 2,000 page views!)
Albertsons #4372 - Sarasota, FL (The Landings) (My second most popular post of the year)
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| Publix #172 - Naples, FL - Covered August 2022 |
Bonus Buy Stores Covered:
Winn-Dixie #2229 - Marion Oaks, FL (The 2nd to last Neon Marketplace store) (My third most popular post of the year)
Publix #7 (The Original) - St. Petersburg, FL (A well preserved Art Deco Publix store)
Publix #27 (The Original) - St. Petersburg, FL (A well preserved Art Deco Publix store)
Publix #1427 - Tallahassee, FL (Capital Circle) (A Publix in a former Bruno's building - a guest post by The Sing Oil Blogger)
Publix #465 - Orlando, FL (Chickasaw Trails) (A conversion of a recently closed mid-1990's Publix into a Hispanic grocery store)
Winn-Dixie #662 - North Port, FL (The last Neon Marketplace store)
Publix #202 (The Original) - Tamarac, FL (A long closed but very well preserved 1970's Publix building)
Publix #172 - Naples, FL (Neapolitan Way) (The last Classy Market 1.0 Publix)
Walmart Neighborhood Market #5759 - Lake Worth, FL (Jog & Lantana) (A Walmart Neighborhood Market still clinging onto its original mid-2000's decor package)
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| Winn-Dixie #662 - North Port, FL - Covered May 2022 |
Thank you again everyone for making it possible to keep this blog going for 9 years now, with plenty more Floridian retail adventures to come in the future too! Next December will mark AFB's 10th birthday, and hopefully I'll be able to put something really fun together to mark that big milestone when it comes around. However that's still a year away, so right now let's just take the take the time to savor this moment, and see what 2023 might bring to us once the new year rolls around!
Keep scrolling down to see my latest feature post (and more, as both myself and The Sing Oil Blogger will be covering this same store in three different ways). Our feature store of the day holds some significance to Publix's past as well as Albertsons', well, as least it did until September 2022...
Anyway, thanks for another great year, and until next time,
The Albertsons Florida Blogger
Congrats on 9 years!! This is one of my favorite websites on the whole Internet and I always love seeing and reading about your various travels. Looking forward to more awesome content in the future!
ReplyDeleteThank you, and thanks for the kind words as well! It means a lot to me knowing this is one of your favorite websites too!
DeleteCongratulations, AFB! 9 years is an amazing achievement and you should be very proud of what you've done in that time. Love reading what you've put out and your research and store coverage this year and always is exceptional. Can't wait to see what's up next! All the best! - Zachary at Market Report Media
ReplyDeleteThank you! I can't believe it's been this long already since I started. Plenty more to come next year too, and thanks for the kind words too!
DeleteCongrats on another great year on the blog! As you well know, your blog has a big following here in Houston. Perhaps it is fair to say that your blog is more loved here than Albertsons itself ever was or even is now with Randall's, lol.
ReplyDeleteIt is not surprising that the St. Pete Publix across from the Publix post was the most popular post of the year. I know I for one was eagerly awaiting that one and the post did not disappoint. That might have been my favorite post of the year (it seems I'm not alone in that regard!), but today's Blue & Grey Market Publixsons certainly challenges that as today's post really, really reminds me of Houston's Albertsons, Krogertsons, and Albertsons Towns.
The Kroger-Albertsons merger news was earth shattering. Well, earth shattering except in Florida and Minnesota it seems, lol. Still, it'll be interesting news to keep an eye on especially with the potential for changes at SEG. It seems that the SEG news seemed to change the narrative that dominated the year of SEG being the 'comeback kid' to now a return to the old narrative of what is wrong with SEG and if they can be saved. Oh well, I suppose that was inevitable, but I don't think all hope is lost. Hopefully SEG will have ownership that will continue to invest in the stores...and invest in decent flooring!
With blogs like Labelscar and Acme Style going dark here recently (thank goodness for the Internet Archive!), it's great to see other blogs like this one which are continuing to do a great job. In fact, we got another great new blog this year with Sing Oil's blog and I think it is fair to say that this blog has influenced Sing Oil's blog so that goes to show the importance of this blog in preserving retail history. I'm looking forward to seeing what the AFB will have for us in 2023!
I totally agree with you, and thank you for your kind words!
DeleteThank you! I never would have thought 9 years ago that AFB would have regular readers from Houston, but it's amazing how geographically diverse the blog's reader base actually is. Glad to have the love from Houston though!
DeleteI had a feeling the St. Pete Publix across from the other Publix post would be popular since that store was quite famous (or infamous, depending on how you look at it!) I'm just surprised how how it shot up in popularity so fast! That post must have gotten a link in another article somewhere, but I was never able to trace the origin of the spike in traffic. I'm not complaining though, as I'll take the views! With Albertsons' huge push into Houston around the time stores like #4413 were being built, I'm not surprised there were so many similar stores like this one around Houston. I have plenty more tours of identical stores to #4413 to post in the future too, so we'll get to see many more like this in the future too (just with more updated from Publix though!)
The Kroger-Albertsons merger will definitely change the entire US grocery industry, although it will probably take both of those companies off the table as SEG's suitor. I was reading an article last night that seemed to suggest a private firm as the most likely buyer for SEG, as outside of Kroger and Albertsons, Ahold-Delhaize would be the only other large grocer out there ready to buy, and they pulled out of Florida in the early 2010's. I think SEG is on the right track right now, and I'd like to see a new owner keep that momentum.
It's a shame all those other blogs had to wipe themselves out of existence entirely, and at the very least, could have kept all the content preserved even if the contributors stopped making regular updates. Thankfully Internet Archive exists to preserve all that otherwise lost research. I have no plans of going anywhere anytime soon, so let's see what AFB will bring to us in 2023!
Congratulations on the milestone! As others have already mentioned, I'm glad that places like this can still exist on the internet. I've certainly learned a tremendous amount from this blog and I hope that it continues well into the future. Anonymous in Houston is absolutely right that you were my biggest influence in this realm (but I still really enjoy reading the work of the others who have already commented), and I'd still be pondering the best way to document and preserve the history of Sing Oil Company if it wasn't for my vague memory of a coral and teal filled Publix.
ReplyDeleteI'm also appreciate that I was able to play a small part in year 9 of the Albertsons Florida Blog and I'm excited for the fun stuff I'll get to share in year 10!
Thank you, and I'm glad you decided to make that Google search about the coral and teal Publix! I know this blog has been a large influence on you, and I'm glad you were able to take that inspiration and pursue a blog of your own too! It's been fun having you around in the blogosphere - I've learned a lot from you too (and I can never look at Publix backdrop tile the same way now either), and I'm excited to see what you'll be sharing with us in the future too!
DeleteCongratulations on the milestone and happy anniversary! I don’t get a chance to comment on every post, but I always enjoy reading what you share, and seeing what nostalgic treasures are hiding in the retail locations that did not completely remove all traces of the buildings former lives. I suppose it’s like a treasure hunt of sorts. Anyway, I’m looking forward to another great year ahead, and talk to you soon.
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Thank you! Yes, it is like a treasure hunt, as sometimes you never know what you'll expect to see when you walk into a building for the first time. Plenty more fun stuff to see this coming year too - hope you enjoy it!
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