Hy-Vee to acquire North Scott Foods

Following 45 years in the grocery business, Steve Grolmus is retiring from his position at the helm of Eldridge, Iowa-based North Scott Foods and selling the single-unit business to Hy-Vee. While there is no firm timeline in place for the acquisition, Grolmus stated on Facebook that Hy-Vee will be taking over in early April.

Grolmus further shared that Hy-Vee will be retaining the North Scott Foods staff, which was notified of the transition last week. 

[Read more: Hy-Vee makes leadership changes]

“As most of you have heard by now, I am retiring and have sold our business to [Hy-Vee],” Grolmus said in his Facebook post. “We have been approached a number of times in the last few years and have decided the time is right. This transition will take place in early April.”

Continued Grolmus: “It has been an honor and privilege for my family to serve and support this awesome community for the past 45 years. You will continue to see the same friendly, hard-working faces as [Hy-Vee] will be retaining all of our staff. More information will be forthcoming.”

Hy-Vee opened its latest shopper-centric location in Janesville, Wis., on Feb. 7. The store emphasizes boutique-like experiences through technology and food service, with counters from Hy-Vee partner Wahlburgers and Hy-Vee’s Nori Sushi, HyChi and Hibachi Asian food, Mia Italian wood-fired pizza, Long Island Deli and Market Grille offerings. Touchscreen kiosks allow shoppers to custom order meals, and more than 50 TV monitors are set up throughout the space to engage and inform shoppers.

[Read more: Hy-Vee opens 3 new stores]

“We have a phenomenal crew here — they are really fired up and we have a lot of potential,” Hy-Vee CEO Jeremy Gosch told Progressive Grocer prior to the store’s opening. Gosch took over as CEO in October and was named vice chairman of Hy-Vee’s board in December.

Employee-owned Hy-Vee operates more than 285 retail stores across eight Midwestern states and has a team of more than 93,000 employees. 

This story originally appeared on Progressive Grocer.