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Supermarkets 'Doing Just Fine,' Says Kroger CFO

ORLANDO, Fla. — A dearth of publicly traded supermarket peers is obscuring the industry’s underlying health from Wall Street, Michael Schlotman, Kroger’s chief financial officer, said at an investor conference here Thursday.

Jon Springer, Executive Editor

April 4, 2013

2 Min Read
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ORLANDO, Fla. — A dearth of publicly traded supermarket peers is obscuring the industry’s underlying health from Wall Street, Michael Schlotman, Kroger’s chief financial officer, said at an investor conference here Thursday.

“There is a dwindling number of comparative companies to look at in our industry, so everybody thinks our industry is dying,” Schlotman said at the Morgan Stanley Restaurant & Retail conference, in response to a question about investor confidence in Kroger’s ability to maintain its performance.

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“Publix, H-E-B, Hy-Vee, Wegmans, WinCo — all of these companies are great full-service grocery operators doing just fine like we are. It’s just that a lot of people who invest for a living don’t recognize they exist, because they can’t own a piece of that action,” Schlotman added. “I’m not saying that I think you [investors] ought to understand those [companies] or spend time on them. … But the fact of the matter is the high end is doing just fine, the low end is doing just fine, and where we operate is doing just fine.”

In response to another question, Schlotman said he didn’t feel Kroger has been affected greatly by the delay in tax-refund payouts and said the company “hasn’t seen blips on the radar screen” as a result of the 2% increase in payroll taxes, but added he felt it was more of a positive than negative as it may increase meals at home.

About the Author

Jon Springer

Executive Editor

Jon Springer is executive editor of Winsight Grocery Business with responsibility for leading its digital news team. Jon has more than 20 years of experience covering consumer business and retail in New York, including more than 14 years at the Retail/Financial desk at Supermarket News. His previous experience includes covering consumer markets for KPMG’s Insiders; the U.S. beverage industry for Beverage Spectrum; and he was a Senior Editor covering commercial real estate and retail for the International Council of Shopping Centers. Jon began his career as a sports reporter and features editor for the Cecil Whig, a daily newspaper in Elkton, Md. Jon is also the author of two books on baseball. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English-Journalism from the University of Delaware. He lives in Brooklyn, N.Y. with his family.

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