Penn Traffic Co., Syracuse, is eliminating one of its four dry grocery warehouses and reconfiguring another facility, Martin A. Fox, chief financial officer, told an investors conference here.
ponsored here by Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette.
He said Penn Traffic closed its Jamestown, N.Y., grocery facility in January and redistributed that volume to its grocery warehouses in Syracuse, N.Y., and DuBois, Pa.
It is in the process of reconfiguring the Jamestown warehouse for general merchandise and health and beauty care for its 200 stores and 156 wholesale accounts, Fox added, and once that is completed, the company will transition general merchandise and HBC out of its nonfoods facility in Columbus, Ohio, which will be closed.
Besides reducing the chain's transportation costs, Penn Traffic expects to improve productivity at its three remaining distribution facilities, Fox said.
It should also simplify the procurement process, which he said will allow the company's merchandising group to do more work on category management "and other cost benefits."
In addition to streamlining distribution, Penn Traffic plans to expand its perishables offerings, Joseph V. Fisher, president and chief executive officer, said at the meeting. "We need to brand our perishables departments for a high-quality image," he explained, including the addition of an in-house Gold Label meat program that can be expanded to other commodities.
In addition, he said Penn Traffic will remerchandise stores to tailor the assortments to local demographic requirements; establish health and wellness departments, and expand its offerings of prepared foods.
