Winn-Dixie to exit Alabama, focus on growing store presence in Florida
The parent company of Winn-Dixie has announced plans to divest its stores in Alabama and other states to focus its efforts on Florida and extreme south Georgia.
Southeastern Grocers, LLC has announced that it will transition ownership of most of its grocery stores outside of Florida. It says it has reached agreements or is advancing plans with multiple grocers.
Those plans involve 32 Winn-Dixie stores and eight Harveys Supermarkets in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.
Store closings are expected to be completed by year-end, with transitions under new ownership to be completed by early next year.
Winn-Dixie, which turned 100 years old this year, has had a longtime presence in our part of Alabama and has stores remaining in Montgomery and several other local cities. Each store employs approximately 80 people.
Earlier this year, some stores, including in Selma and Auburn, became Aldi locations after that company bought some stores from Southeastern Grocers. A former Winn-Dixie at Carter Hill Road at Narrow Lane Road in Montgomery is undergoing renovations to become an Aldi.
“As we write our next chapter as The Winn-Dixie Company, we also want to acknowledge the people and communities
beyond Florida who have been an integral part of our story,” Anthony Hucker, the company’s chairman and CEO said. “We are profoundly thankful to our associates and customers in these markets for their loyalty – for making Winn-Dixie and Harveys a meaningful part of their lives and trusting us to help nourish their families. We will do everything we can to support those who
supported us, ensuring this transition reflects the gratitude and respect they deserve.”
The company says it will now be known as The Winn-Dixie Company in early 2026, uniting under one brand with a renewed focus on its home state of Florida. It is based in Jacksonville.
The newly-named company says it will operate approximately 130 conventional grocery stores and 140 freestanding and grocery-adjacent liquor stores following these transactions. Dozens of remodels and new store projects are both planned and already underway in Florida and southern Georgia. Winn-Dixie says it will remain in the south Georgia cities of Brunswick, Folkston, Lake Park, St. Simons Island and Valdosta.
The company says the change honors Winn-Dixie’s century-long legacy while positioning the grocer for growth through investments designed to modernize stores, enrich the customer experience and reimagine the neighborhood grocer for the next 100 years.
