Salisbury-based Food Lion is launching a new "brand strategy" in 268 of its stores, as the grocer attempts to restore some of its shine following last year's closure of more than 100 under-performing stores.
None of the stores receiving the new strategy are in Charlotte, though some are in North Carolina. Food Lion says they expect to roll out the new strategy to a further 600 or so stores by the end of 2012.
The new strategy involves cutting prices on about 6,000 popular items, improving the fresh produce section and rearranging stores to make them more convenient to shop. Food Lion had tested the strategy in Raleigh, Fayetteville and Chattanooga, and the company said it saw sales increases at those stores.
Food Lion is owned by Belgian mega-grocer Delhaize. The company also owns and operates supermarkets such as Bottom Dollar, Harveys, and formerly, Bloom. Delhaize has been experimenting with its different formats, trying to find a working combination. It recently closed all Bloom stores and announced plans to expand Bottom Dollar (similar to Aldi) in the northeast.
Here's a list of all the Food Lion stores where the new strategy is being implemented. And here's a blog post from January with some more details about Food Lion's store closures and the grocer's recent woes.