Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market Bags New Store Location in San Francisco's Mission District

Breaking Buzz 
Tesco's Fresh & Easy in Northern California - 2011

Tesco's Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market has inked a deal with the building's landlord to renovate and move into the former Delano's IGA Markets' grocery store (pictured at top) at 1245 South Van Ness Avenue (at 23rd Street) in San Francisco's Mission District, Fresh & Easy Buzz has learned.

Delano's IGA Markets closed the Mission District store along with four others in December 2010. See our stories - November 30, 2010: DeLano's IGA Markets Closing Five Stores in San Francisco & Marin County; Fairfax, Davis Units to Remain Open (For Now); and November 29, 2010: Veteran Grocer Harley DeLano's 'DeLano IGA Markets' Chain On the Verge of Closure in San Francisco Bay Area.

We reported on and wrote about Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market's attempt to bag the South Van Ness Avenue location in this January 26, 2011 story: Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market is On A Mission - In San Francisco's Mission District.

In addition to Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market, locally-based salvage and discount grocery chain Grocery Outlet has been vying for the location at 1245 South Van Ness Avenue in San Francisco. Grocery Outlet, which is headquartered just across the bay from San Francisco in Berkeley, is fast-growing, aiming to double its store count over a five year period that began in 2009.

According to our sources, Tesco's Fresh & Easy has won out and has or will be signing a multi-year lease with landlord of the vacant Delano's IGA Markets store at 1245 South Van Ness Avenue.

The Mission District location will be Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market's fourth site in San Francisco.

On Wednesday, June 22, United Kingdom-based Tesco opens its first Fresh & Easy store in the city, at 32nd and Clement street in the Outer Richmond District.

The second Fresh & Easy market is set to open in San Francisco on August 24. The store is in the 5800 Third Street residential housing development at 3rd Street and Carroll Avenue in the city's Bayview District.

We broke the news on the opening dates of Fresh & Easy's two San Francisco stores. Read our story here - May 23, 2011: Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market Confirms Our Reports First Two San Francisco Stores to Open June 22 and August 24, 2011

Tesco's third Fresh & Easy store location in San Francisco is at Silver Avenue and Goettingen, which is in the Portola District.

The grocery chain has yet to begin renovations on the vacant building in the Portola District, which formerly housed a Cala Foods supermarket. Tesco's Fresh & Easy leased the property in late 2007-early 2008.

The Mission District location at 1245 South Van Ness, which will be the fourth Fresh & Easy location in San Francisco to date based on our reporting, was also home to a Cala Foods supermarket, which was closed by Kroger Co. a number of years ago.

Delano's IGA Markets took over the location a few years ago, along with the other four it closed late last year, from Kroger's Cala/Bell Markets division, which has just one store left in Northern California, at 1095 Hyde Street on Nob Hill in San Francisco, which it's closing at the end of this year.

Kroger's Southern California-based Ralphs/Food 4 Less operates the Foods Co chain of discount warehouse stores in Northern California, which it's in the process of growing in terms of developing and opening new stores. (Click on this link Northern California Special Report to read about Kroger's plans for Foods Co in Northern California.)

Kroger Co. decided a number of years ago to close the Cala/Bell Markets chain. It sold or closed all of the about 25 Cala Foods and Bell Market stores (all were in the San Francisco Bay Area) over a period of a few years, except for the remaining unit in San Francisco.

Related Stories

February 17, 2011: Mollie Stone's Markets Planning to Open Newest Store in San Francisco First Week in March

January 26, 2011: Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market is On A Mission - In San Francisco's Mission District

January 13, 2011: Mollie Stone's Markets Taking Over Closed 18th Street Delano's IGA Market in San Francisco's Castro District

January 28, 2011: Mollie Stone's Markets Confirms Our January 13 Report; Announces New San Francisco Store Via Twitter & Facebook

November 30, 2010: DeLano's IGA Markets Closing Five Stores in San Francisco & Marin County; Fairfax, Davis Units to Remain Open (For Now)

November 29, 2010: Veteran Grocer Harley DeLano's 'DeLano IGA Markets' Chain On the Verge of Closure in San Francisco Bay Area

January 26, 2011: Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market is On A Mission - In San Francisco's Mission District

Plus: see (click on) the following links for additional, related stories: Fresh and Easy Northern California, Fresh and Easy San Francisco Bay Area, Northern California, Northern California Special Report, SF Bay Area.