Whole Foods might buy Johnnies Foodmaster

[koshmom.livejournal.com]

http://www.boston.com/business/news/2012/08/29/whole-foods-talks-buy-six-johnnie-foodmaster-supermarkets-boston-area-whole-foods-looksat-johnnie-takeover/btF7NC9VeA0OPmcx2b8TgI/story.html

From the article:

"Negotiations are still in the early stages, but Whole Foods wants to move into six of the 10 Johnnie’s Foodmaster sites in Arlington, Brookline, Charlestown, Melrose, South Weymouth, and on Beacon Street in Somerville."

and

"It is unclear whether Johnnie’s Foodmaster would continue operating the remaining four stores in Lynn, Medford, Whitman, and the Somerville location on Alewife Brook Parkway if it finalizes an agreement with Whole Foods."

Dang. I really like their butcher, their meats always look good and are extremely reasonably priced. They're also a clean, friendly store.

Comments

[magid.livejournal.com]

They're so much more affordable than Whole Foods; I rely on having a cheaper supermarket nearby. ::sigh::

[teko.livejournal.com]

Since there's already a Whole Foods within 5 minutes or less of the Foodmaster on Alewife Brook, I'm assuming they're not opening one in that location. I just hope Johnnie's stays open.

[ron_newman]

The Beacon Street Foodmaster is pretty close to the Prospect Street Whole Foods. (Google map says 0.7 miles.)

And I'm surprised that Whole Foods wants to open in Charlestown. Sure, there are some yuppies over there, but it's not the main demographic.

[benndragon.livejournal.com]

I assume it's not like that for all locations, but buying out an entire chain in order to get one or two of their spots then closing down the rest of the stores is a real corporate dick move.

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

Not that it's on the list to convert, but I guess I'm the only one who'd be happy to see that Foodmaster replaced with just about anything. I used to live around the corner and I still never shopped there because it was so horrible. The prices weren't great and the selection terrible. The difference between it and, say, Market Basket was night and day.

[ifotismeni]

i agree with this. and as much flak as MB gets for looking old, at least their produce and food selections are always fresh and clean. foodmaster straight-up gave me the heebie-jeebies. it felt like food shopping in a funeral parlor.

NB: i used to live down street from the foodmaster in question and went there for boxed goods only, basically, and MB was more competitive but a lot further away. now i live in boston down the street from a WF and the price difference between shopping there and at the shaws a bit further away is very dramatic. (and shaws isn't cheap either, IMO)

[emcicle.livejournal.com]

I have to agree and disagree. Their produce selection absolutely bites. But they are significantly cheaper on meat, dairy/yogurt/milk, and most canned and boxed goods than Shaw's in Porter. I'm foot and stroller bound for getting my groceries, so it's much easier for me to walk 1/2 mile to Johnnie's than it is to walk over a mile to Shaw's. I sometimes hoof it over to TJ's for some stuff, but i really like having something relatively cheaper in such close walking proximity. (If I lived near walking distance to Market Basket, or had a car, I'm sure I would feel the same way you do, though!)

[mindstalk.livejournal.com]

I think Star Market, really Shaw's, on Beacon is a bit cheaper than the one on Porter, which I assume is priced for the T stop convenience. Also less crowded.

But almost everywhere is expensive compared to what I'm used to. I actually hoof or bike to TJ a lot now, rather than just going for nuts and whole wheat pasta. MB's actually closer but I haven't gotten to it much.

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

To be fair, flying to Florida, buying all your food, and flying back verges on being cheaper than the Porter Square Shaw's.

[emcicle.livejournal.com]

and the food would be much better, at least for produce. :)

i try to buy as much as i can at the farmer's markets in the summer. it's not cheaper, but it tastes way better.

[borgin.livejournal.com]

I definitely have to agree with this. :)

[clevernonsense.livejournal.com]

yeah i also avoided it when i lived relatively nearby.

[pekmez.livejournal.com]

That was my first FoodMaster, so I have a little fondness for it, but it's certainly much worse than the one on Route 16 and
both of them are lamer than Market Basket.

Still, I will be sad to see a smallish string of Massachusetts stores replaced by a few Whole foods and a few empty store fronts.

[littlecitynames.livejournal.com]

I would be incredibly upset if this Foodmaster closed. It's a block away from me. I am way too busy and broke to trek anywhere else. The selection is okay, and anything that can't be purchased there could be bought from the twin Whole Foods a mile in either direction on the Parkway. I don't know what you mean about the prices, considering they're lower than any other supermarket I've been to in the area besides MB. And while I love MB, it's three miles away and that is too far to bike with groceries and would take up a stupid amount of my day with bus schedules. I would probably have to resort to Peapod. Also, it's right next to a whole bunch of public housing. If it were closed or turned into a Whole Foods, it would be awful for the surrounding community.

Basically, there is no supermarket in this area except that Foodmaster, so unless they're replacing it with something else affordable, it would be awful to get rid of it.

[greenlily.livejournal.com]

The Beacon St. Johnnie's is really gross. I've lived less than a block away for 7 years and have bought perishables/produce there less than a dozen times. However, the store is important to a lot of people in that neighborhood, and for that reason I'd be sorry to see it go.

I don't feel like we need another Whole Foods in that location so close to the Prospect St. WF--I would prefer a Trader Joe's. Sigh.

[somervillesnow.livejournal.com]

I too am going to voice the perennial fantasy that Trader Joe's will wake up and try to move in on the Somerville market, in any of the locations.

[emcicle.livejournal.com]

hee hee, i was wondering how long until someone said that. ;)

[koshmom.livejournal.com]

The square footage (and parking) at the Johnnie's Beacon Street location is much more than the Prospect St. WF...how much you want to bet they're going to simply clean up and move into that locale, and close the tiny Prospect WF? It is kinda close to the big WF on (River?)

[ron_newman]

When Whole Foods built the big one on River Street, everyone in Cambridge expected them to close Prospect Street (originally 'Bread and Circus'), but that didn't happen.

[boblothrope.livejournal.com]

The Prospect Street Whole Foods is busy all the time. It has the longest and latest hours of any Whole Foods in New England. And much of the business is walk-in.

So I don't think it will close.

[exsplusohs.livejournal.com]

I will be really, really sad if the Arlington Johnnie's closes. I shop there because frankly, I don't have a lot of money. Stop & Shop is more expensive, and Whole Foods is certainly more expensive than that. Plus, I like the idea of supporting a local supermarket. Granted, the Johnnie's on Broadway isn't on the list of potential converts, but it's also not as nice as the Arlington store.

[rethcir.livejournal.com]

Johnnie's Foodmaster is like a Market Basket-brand version of Market Basket.

[clevernonsense.livejournal.com]

+

[mindstalk.livejournal.com]

I don't know how to interpret that.

[littlecitynames.livejournal.com]

This comment made me laugh amid my sadness.

[koshmom.livejournal.com]

When I first moved to the area I lived about 2 blocks from the Johnnies in Arlington, and thought it was OK but a little more expensive than the Stop n Shop down mass ave. Then I moved to Medford, and the one on Rte 60 is now my closest, and is clean, tidy, has excellent customer service, superb prices and quality of meat, and a little of everything so I can always get something. I've been to Beacon Street and Broadway stores, and both seem crowded and not as tidy as Medford. The Melrose store is also quite nice, but too far from me and not quite as nice as the Rte 60 one.

I suspect since Johnnies is a family run store, they're happy to have the potential buy-out of a bigger chain. Not only will they profit from the buyout, but it's mighty hard to have a business end-game if you want to retire and you own a supermarket (or 6).

Note that closing supermarkets appears to be a trend nationwide. In NJ where my mom lives, all the local markets have closed and now everyone in town has to travel at least 15-20 minutes by car to a decent supermarket. Or else buy from the poor selection at the local Wal-Mart (which rivals the local 7-11 for variety and quality).

[borgin.livejournal.com]

A lot of the things I bought at Whole Foods had better prices than Johnnie's (So Delicious coconut milk, Olivia's Organics). Of course, now I live by the Porter Square Shaws and almost everything I buy is cheaper at Whole Foods. I wish WF would buy that store. :)

[http://users.livejournal.com/cgull_/]

The stores vary a lot. Alewife is my local store. It curls my fingernails, I feel like I can count the number of times I've wanted to buy anything fresh there on one hand (sadly, I've done it more often than that), and I really use it just for packaged/frozen goods. It's like a convenience store with a really big selection and semi-decent prices. Beacon St. is not much better.

But the one in Arlington is quite a bit better. I'm not sure the produce is *much* better, but the store is clearly cleaner, better organized, and better run; I would shop there regularly if that were around the corner.

[lfitzb.livejournal.com]

Not a WF apologist here, but I work on research studies in low income neighborhoods and housing in cambridge and somerville. When asked which grocery stores they shop at regularly...the Fresh Pond (near a trader joe's) and Clarendon Hill towers both resoundingly responded that they shopped mostly at Market Basket in Union, even though it was far away.

So even if a WF were to move in there for the majority of the people living in those buildings would not have to change their shopping habits. Just a little anecdote.

p.s. Trader joe's is not cheap anymore.

p.p.s I shop at Johnnie's for last minute things, milk, eggs, cottage cheese, chips. Although it does feel like I'm stepping back into the 70's ever time I go there, I still appreciate that location. They do have a good select of reasonably priced local and organic products.

[ron_newman]

Which means it would make a lot of sense for Johnnie's to sell the Clarendon Hill location to Market Basket. Wonder if they're interested in buying it?

[lfitzb.livejournal.com]

That would definitely be a good solution. Or maybe Johnnie's just needs a change in management...

[littlecitynames.livejournal.com]

Ohhh man I hope so. This would be the best solution.

[littlecitynames.livejournal.com]

TJ's is still cheaper than anywhere else I know of for produce and cereal!

[daviscubed.livejournal.com]

How does this affect the Star Market on Winter Hill?

[ron_newman]

Why would it?

[aynatt.livejournal.com]

This really blows, just what we need is another Whole Foods, a ridiculously overpriced market to go into Inman Square. Even though Foodmaster is not high on my list for supermarkets to shop at, the fact that it is a family run business, makes it worth it for me to go there. So few family run businesses around these days.

If we have to have another chain take over, I'd much rather it be Trader Joes. They are wonderfully priced and their staff are always so friendly (sometimes I wonder if they feed them a dose of Wellbutrin before they start work) and actually happy to answer any questions you have.