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Fairway Market to sell two N.J. store leases to Amazon

Village Super Market wins auction for four Fairway locations in Manhattan

Russell Redman

March 25, 2020

3 Min Read
Fairway Market-store sign
The successful bids in the court-supervised auction, also including a Brooklyn store being acquired by Key Food member Seven Seas Georgetowne, account for eight of Fairway’s 14 locations.Fairway Market

In a court-supervised asset auction, Fairway Market awarded bids for two store leases in New Jersey to Amazon and six locations in New York City to ShopRite operator Village Super Market Inc. and Key Food Cooperative member Seven Seas Georgetowne LLC.

Amazon is slated to acquire Fairway’s Paramus and Woodland Park, N.J., store leases for $1.5 million, Fairway announced late Wednesday. Meanwhile, Village Super Market will pay $76 million for four of Fairway’s Manhattan stores (Upper East Side, Upper West Side, Chelsea and Kips Bay, plus the parking lot of the Harlem store), its Pelham Manor store in New York's Westchester County, and its production and distribution center in the Bronx. Seven Seas won Fairway’s Georgetown store in Brooklyn, N.Y., with a $5 million bid.

“We are pleased with the outcome of the auction and are grateful for our dedicated and hard-working employees, suppliers and distributors during this process, which has taken place in these unprecedented times,” Abel Porter, CEO of Fairway Market, said in a statement. “Serving our community has always been our top priority and we remain committed to providing quality items and a safe shopping environment for our customers and our employees during this global health crisis.”

Related:Report: Amazon bids for four Fairway Market stores

Fairway entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in late January and, upon filing, the upscale grocer said it aimed to sell all of its stores. The successful bids account for eight of New York-based Fairway’s 14 locations.

“These Fairway stores and DC employ over 1,500 people, who have been doing heroic work responding to our local exigency during the ongoing crisis, clearly demonstrating the critical role our supermarkets play in communities all around the country,” Scott Moses, managing director and head of food retail and restaurant investment banking at PJ Solomon, said in an email late Wednesday. “It is an honor to serve the Fairway team as they rise to the challenge and help sustain New York area families during this difficult period.” New York-based PJ Solomon is serving as Fairway’s M&A investment banking adviser.

Fairway said it will continue to operate stores not sold in the auction “for the foreseeable future.” The remaining locations include one store in Manhattan (Harlem), one in Brooklyn (Red Hook), one in Queens (Douglaston), two in Long Island (Westbury and Plainview) and one in Connecticut (Stamford).

Amazon ended up with two of the four stores for which it made offers. Last week, the New York Post reported that Amazon bid for Fairway’s stores in the Red Hook area of Brooklyn; Pelham Manor, N.Y.; and Woodland Park and Paramus, N.J.

Related:Fairway Market receives higher offer for Manhattan locations

Earlier this month, Fairway received a $75 million offer for its five Manhattan stores, Pelham Manor store and Bronx DC from Brooklyn-based Bogopa Enterprises, which operates 26 Food Bazaar supermarkets in New York City, Westchester County, Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut.

And in January, the same day that it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Fairway unveiled a $70 million stalking-horse bid for its five Manhattan stores and DC from Wakefern Food Corp. member Village Super Market. Springfield, N.J.-based Village owns and operates 30 ShopRite supermarkets in New Jersey, Maryland, New York City and Pennsylvania and three Gourmet Garage specialty markets in New York City.

Fairway’s remaining retail locations also include two Wine & Spirits stores in New Jersey and one apiece in New York and Connecticut.

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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