Kroger deal with Giant Eagle met with gusto

After failing to acquire Albertsons, Kroger made a move today that shows the Cincinnati-based grocer is still looking to grab chunks of market share.

Industry experts are weighing in on the deal to acquire Giant Eagle for $1.65 billion, and most like it.

Expert analysis

Peter V.S. Bond, head of Industry and Client Engagement at Flywheel and founder and co-host of the CPG Guys, said the move was not about adding store count. In fact, he says it’s consolidation in and around markets where Kroger already competes.

“Loyalty and private label are exactly the assets that make an acquisition accretive to a retail media and personalization engine, not just store count,” he wrote on LinkedIn. “After the Albertsons deal collapsed, Kroger is choosing a smaller, more regionally contained target—a signal about how M&A appetite in grocery is being recalibrated post-FTC.”

Greg Foran, Kroger’s new CEO, came over from Walmart and knows low prices are built on scale. Giant Eagle adds $9 billion in buying power and a dense regional footprint where Kroger runs thin, Chris Sheldon, a consulting director for PODEAN, said.

“Giant Eagle is a different animal [than Albertsons],” he said on LinkedIn. “Limited overlap with Kroger’s current stores.”

Deal requirements

Sheldon said two things need to happen for the deal to work in Kroger’s favor:

Quickly connect buying and ops teams to get better prices and cost savings fast

Connect Giant Eagle to Kroger Precision Marketing ASAP and convert this new audience into profitable retail media dollars

This deal could have, and probably should have, happened years ago, but then the COVID-19 pandemic came swooping into the mix.

“The [Giant Eagle] family was looking to sell, and were just prior to COVID,” said Jose Tamez, managing partner at Austin Michael LP. “They have been shopping it here again in recent years. I’m told the price would’ve likely been higher [two, three years ago as they have been losing market share].”

Market implications

Elizabeth Lafontaine, director of research at Placer.ai, said the Giant Eagle network helps Kroger continue to broaden its national presence and compete with superstores and warehouse clubs, which are both eating into the overall grocery sector’s territory.

Kroger’s growth in visitation has been slower than the overall category until 2026, she said, as its group of banners competes with regional darlings across the country, value-based formats and fresh-format grocers. Giant Eagle’s traffic growth has also underperformed.

“Adding a new regional banner like Giant Eagle … can add scale to Kroger’s presence nationally,” Lafontaine said. “The Midwest and Mid-Atlantic markets do have some key regional players that shoppers love, so this merger may help Kroger make inroads in those communities.”

The reaction, however, is not all positive. One source said the deal is “much ado about nothing.”

“Giant Eagle isn’t a strong asset ... it’s a chain that’s been losing share to Walmart in its own home market since 2022, closing stores through 2026. Kroger isn’t taking shares from Walmart here,” the source said.

Kroger is also still cleaning up the mess from the failed merger with Albertsons.

Albertsons sued Kroger in December 2024, stating that Kroger refused to offer an adequate divestiture package and repeatedly ignored regulators’ concerns—moves that Albertsons claims caused regulators to block the merger deal.

A coalition of eight states and the District of Columbia filed a federal lawsuit against both Kroger and Albertsons seeking compensation for the costs they incurred investigating the companies’ proposed merger. The lawsuit seeks payment of about $10.35 million to cover the plaintiffs' attorney fees and litigation expenses.