--- title: "Albertsons Store Closures in 2026 and What They Mean…" canonical: "https://www.metaintro.com/blog/albertsons-store-closures-2026-grocery-workers" language: "en" author: "drashtigarach" published: "2026-05-27T13:34:22.000Z" modified: "2026-10-02T19:31:03.325Z" --- [Back to Blog](/blog) [Layoffs](/blog/tag/layoffs)[Jobs](/blog/tag/jobs)[Career](/blog/tag/career)[Information](/blog/tag/information) # Albertsons Store Closures in 2026 and What They Mean for Grocery Workers Albertsons is closing roughly a dozen stores in 2026 and cutting 295 corporate jobs after its failed Kroger merger. Here is what it means for grocery workers. [![Drashti Garach](https://cdn.metaintro.com/rs:fill:40:40/q:72/plain/images/5719d740-e510-42bc-8017-e040d145f35f_1766029465094.png)Drashti Garach @DrashtiGarach](/blog/author/drashtigarach) [May 27, 2026](/blog/archive/2026/05)14 min read ![A shuttered grocery storefront at night with the security gate down](https://cdn.metaintro.com/rs:fill:1200:675/q:78/plain/images/kai.FDB1pTTz.png) [https://x.com/intent/tweet?text=Albertsons%20Store%20Closures%20in%202026%20and%20What%20They%20Mean%20for%20Grocery%20Workers&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.metaintro.com%2Fblog%2Falbertsons-store-closures-2026-grocery-workers](https://x.com/intent/tweet?text=Albertsons%20Store%20Closures%20in%202026%20and%20What%20They%20Mean%20for%20Grocery%20Workers&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.metaintro.com%2Fblog%2Falbertsons-store-closures-2026-grocery-workers)[http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.metaintro.com%2Fblog%2Falbertsons-store-closures-2026-grocery-workers](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.metaintro.com%2Fblog%2Falbertsons-store-closures-2026-grocery-workers)[https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.metaintro.com%2Fblog%2Falbertsons-store-closures-2026-grocery-workers&title=Albertsons%20Store%20Closures%20in%202026%20and%20What%20They%20Mean%20for%20Grocery%20Workers](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.metaintro.com%2Fblog%2Falbertsons-store-closures-2026-grocery-workers&title=Albertsons%20Store%20Closures%20in%202026%20and%20What%20They%20Mean%20for%20Grocery%20Workers)[mailto:?subject=Albertsons%20Store%20Closures%20in%202026%20and%20What%20They%20Mean%20for%20Grocery%20Workers&body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.metaintro.com%2Fblog%2Falbertsons-store-closures-2026-grocery-workers](mailto:?subject=Albertsons%20Store%20Closures%20in%202026%20and%20What%20They%20Mean%20for%20Grocery%20Workers&body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.metaintro.com%2Fblog%2Falbertsons-store-closures-2026-grocery-workers) If you work for Albertsons or one of its banners and you have seen the headlines, here is the plain answer. Albertsons is closing roughly a dozen stores so far in 2026 and laying off 295 people from its corporate and divisional support teams, a sweep that follows the collapse of its 24.6 billion dollar merger with Kroger in December 2024. As [Fast Company](https://www.fastcompany.com/91547034/albertsons-store-closures-list-doomed-locations-2026) reported in its running list of doomed locations, more than half of the 2026 store closures sit in California and Texas, with additional shutdowns in New Jersey, Connecticut, Nevada and Washington, D.C. For store-level workers the closures mean WARN notices, transfer offers and hard decisions, and at [Metaintro](https://www.metaintro.com) we track exactly these moves so the people affected can see where the jobs are going before the doors close. This piece breaks down which stores are closing, why, and what your next move should be. ## How many Albertsons stores are closing in 2026? So far in 2026, at least a dozen Albertsons locations have either closed or been formally marked for closure, and that count keeps climbing as the company files new notices with state labor agencies. That follows a heavier 2025 in which Albertsons shut somewhere in the range of two to three dozen stores, so the 2026 wave is best understood as a continuation rather than a sudden new event. The chain is steadily pruning underperformers while it reassesses a footprint it expected to fold into Kroger. The closures are not random. More than half cluster in California and Texas, the two states where Albertsons runs the densest store networks and where it faces the toughest grocery competition. The remaining shutdowns are scattered across New Jersey, Connecticut, Nevada and the District of Columbia. Because these announcements arrive store by store through Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filings, the running total tends to lag the reality on the ground, and workers in markets that have not yet seen a closure should not assume their location is safe. If you want to understand how this fits the broader retail picture, our coverage of [Kohl's 27 store closures across 15 states](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/kohls-27-store-closures-15-states-1100-locations-retail-jobs-2026) shows the same playbook of footprint trimming playing out across the sector. ## Which Albertsons banners and locations are affected? This is the part many workers miss. Albertsons does not just operate stores called Albertsons. The company runs more than 2,200 supermarkets under a stack of regional banners including Safeway, Vons, Acme, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Market Street, Jewel-Osco and Balducci's. So when you read that a Vons or a Safeway is closing, that is an Albertsons closure even though the sign out front says something else. The 2026 wave has touched several of these banners at once. In Texas, Albertsons is closing two North Texas stores and cutting 138 jobs, according to WARN filings reported by [WFAA](https://www.wfaa.com/article/money/business/albertsons-to-close-two-north-texas-stores-cut-138-jobs-filings-show/287-4d2c4c09-c3ff-49bf-94fc-76e8f305abf1). The Euless store at 1155 N. Main Street affects 82 employees and the Fort Worth store at 6700 W. Freeway affects 56 employees, with both closing on or before April 25, 2026, and workers notified on March 9. The company told regulators that opportunities for continued employment at other company locations are available and that it intends to place as many associates as possible. In California, two Vons stores are going dark. The Vons in Escondido at 2345 E. Valley Parkway will close by May 1, 2026, eliminating 65 jobs, with the pharmacy stopping service on April 16, as [Hoodline](https://hoodline.com/2026/03/escondido-vons-axed-as-65-workers-face-layoffs-in-albertsons-store-flip/) reported from the WARN notice the company filed on March 2. Albertsons frames the Escondido move as an investment in the local shopping experience because the site is slated to reopen under the Albertsons banner, which is a reminder that a banner closure is not always a permanent exit from a neighborhood. Separately, a Vons in Redlands at 552 N. Orange Street is permanently closing effective March 19, 2026, affecting 70 employees, per the WARN alert circulated on [Threads](https://www.threads.com/@whatlayoff/post/DTvyTNdFV4a/warn-alert-california-the-vons-companies-will-permanently-close-a-redlands?hl=en). Together the two California closures hit 135 workers. In Washington, D.C., a long-running Safeway is closing too. The 58,000 square foot Safeway at 1601 Maryland Ave. NE inside Hechinger Mall is expected to close no later than May 16, 2026, with its pharmacy ceasing operations on April 1, according to neighborhood outlet [PoPville](https://www.popville.com/2026/03/safeway-dc-hechinger-mall-closing/) and broadcast coverage from [DC News Now](https://www.dcnewsnow.com/news/local-news/washington-dc/northeast-dc-safeway-store-to-close-after-40-years-in-business/). That store has served the neighborhood for more than 40 years, and the company says workers there can be reassigned to other nearby locations. ## Why is Albertsons closing stores after the Kroger merger fell apart? The single biggest force behind the 2026 closures is a deal that never happened. In October 2022, Kroger agreed to buy Albertsons in a transaction valued at 24.6 billion dollars, a merger that would have created a grocery behemoth. The deal drew immediate antitrust scrutiny, and in December 2024 it collapsed. As the [Federal Trade Commission](https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/12/statement-ftc-victory-securing-halt-kroger-albertsons-grocery-merger) announced, the agency and a bipartisan group of state attorneys general won a court order halting the merger on the grounds that it would eliminate fierce competition and raise prices for millions of shoppers. Two courts blocked the deal on the same day. As [NPR](https://www.npr.org/2024/12/10/nx-s1-5114999/kroger-albertsons-merger-ftc-lawsuit-court-ruling) reported, a federal judge in Oregon enjoined the merger while it underwent administrative review, and a Washington state court separately found it violated that state's consumer protection law. Days later, Albertsons terminated the merger agreement and sued Kroger in the Delaware Court of Chancery, seeking a 600 million dollar termination fee plus billions in damages, a fight detailed by [UPI](https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2024/12/11/Albertsons-sues-Kroger-failed-merger/1361733935512/). Kroger called the claims baseless. The practical fallout is what workers are living through now. Albertsons had spent two years preparing to be absorbed, and when that lifeline vanished it was left as a standalone company facing intense pressure from Costco, Walmart and Texas powerhouse H-E-B, along with Whole Foods in many markets. With no merger to lean on, the company turned to the standard retail toolkit of closing underperforming stores and trimming overhead, which is why the footprint review accelerated through 2025 and into 2026. ## How many workers are losing their jobs at Albertsons? The total is larger than the store closures alone suggest. On the corporate side, Albertsons confirmed it is laying off 295 employees from its corporate and divisional support staff, a move first reported across outlets including [Progressive Grocer](https://progressivegrocer.com/albertsons-laying-corporate-divisional-support-staff). A company spokesperson said the reductions will help Albertsons compete in a rapidly changing market, and the company emphasized that store-level employees are not part of this particular corporate cut. Then there are the store closures themselves. The Texas closures account for 138 jobs, the two California Vons closures account for 135, and the District of Columbia Safeway adds more, though the company there has leaned toward reassignment rather than termination. Across the 2025 and early 2026 closures combined, reporting from [Fox Business](https://www.foxbusiness.com/retail/major-grocery-chain-closes-more-stores-cuts-jobs-post-merger-fallout-deepens) and others puts the cumulative store-level job impact at several hundred positions and counting. The important nuance for affected workers is that a closure does not automatically mean a layoff. In filing after filing, Albertsons has said it intends to place as many associates as possible at nearby stores, which means many of these jobs convert into transfers rather than pink slips. That distinction matters for how you plan. If you are a corporate employee in the 295, you are looking at severance, extended benefits and career support services that the company has said it will provide. If you are a store associate at a closing location, your first conversation should be about a transfer offer and how seniority carries over under your contract. The outcomes are genuinely different, and conflating the two leads people to either panic when they should negotiate or relax when they should act. ## What does this mean for your career as a grocery worker? Start with the fact that grocery is one of the more resilient corners of retail employment. Even as Albertsons trims its footprint, the broader food retail labor market keeps moving, and competitors expanding in the same regions are often hiring the exact skills you already have. If your store is closing, the most valuable move is to treat your transfer rights as the first option, not the fallback. Ask your store director and your union representative in writing what positions are open at nearby locations, what your seniority entitles you to, and how soon a transfer can be processed. Get the answers documented so nothing gets lost in the shuffle of a closing store. If a transfer is not available or not workable for your commute and life, pivot fast to the open market while you still have a paycheck. The grocery, warehouse and broader retail sectors in California, Texas and the DC area are not standing still, and many of the chains taking market share from Albertsons are actively staffing up. Our reporting on [a February 2026 jump in US retail sales and its hiring impact](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/us-retail-sales-jump-february-2026-hiring-impact-retail-workers) and on [Dollar Tree and Starbucks opening new stores](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/dollar-tree-starbucks-new-stores-retail-hiring-2026) shows where demand is concentrated right now. Pharmacy technicians, deli and bakery specialists, department leads and experienced cashiers all carry transferable credentials, so do not assume your experience only counts inside the Albertsons family. Protect your finances and your benefits in parallel. Confirm your final pay date, accrued vacation payout, and the exact day your health coverage ends, because closure timelines and benefit cutoffs do not always line up. If you are being laid off rather than transferred, file for unemployment immediately rather than waiting, since benefits are not retroactive in most states. Our step by step guide on [how to apply for unemployment benefits after a 2026 layoff](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/laid-off-2026-apply-unemployment-benefits-now) walks through the timing and documents you will need. Treating the WARN notice period as a paid runway to line up your next role, rather than as a countdown to unemployment, is what separates the workers who land softly from the ones who scramble. ## Is the grocery industry safe to build a career in long term? Yes, with eyes open. Grocery is not disappearing, and the closures you are reading about are a company-specific restructuring story far more than an industry-collapse story. Albertsons is shrinking because its merger failed and because rivals like Walmart, Costco and H-E-B are winning share, not because people stopped buying food. That is an important framing, because the demand for the work itself stays steady even as the logos that employ you shift around. What is changing is how the work gets done and where the stable jobs sit. Automation, self-checkout and the slow arrival of more technology-heavy store formats are reshaping which roles grow and which shrink, a trend we examine in our look at [the AI-run store and its impact on the retail workforce](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/ai-run-store-retail-workforce-impact-2026). The associates who fare best tend to be the ones who deepen a specialty, pharmacy, fresh departments, food safety, scheduling and team leadership, because those roles are harder to automate and more valuable to whichever banner ends up employing you. Online grocery and fulfillment is another fast-moving frontier, and even adjacent shifts like the ones described in our coverage of [Amazon's grocery and fresh changes](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/amazon-singapore-layoffs-grocery-fresh-2026) signal where the sector is reallocating jobs. Building a career here is still realistic, as long as you stay mobile, keep your certifications current, and watch which employers are growing rather than contracting in your region. ## What should you do right now if your store is on the list? Move on three tracks at once and do not wait for perfect information. First, lock down your situation with your current employer. Get your transfer options, severance terms, final pay date and benefit cutoff in writing, and if you are in a union, loop in your representative the same week the notice goes out. Knowing whether you are headed for a transfer or a termination changes everything else you do, so resolve that ambiguity before anything else. Second, start applying immediately rather than treating the WARN period as a break. The strongest position you can be in is to have a next role lined up before your last day, and the regional chains absorbing Albertsons customers are frequently the ones hiring. It also helps to study how comparable retail workforces have navigated similar shutdowns, which is why our coverage of [Five Guys store closures and what workers did next](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/five-guys-store-closures-doomed-locations-workers-2026) and [Apple store closures across three states](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/apple-store-closures-3-states-retail-workers-jobs-2026) is worth a read for the practical playbook, not just the headlines. Third, organize your paperwork and your story before you need them. Update your resume with concrete numbers, sales handled, shrink reduced, team size led, and gather references from managers while they still remember your work clearly. Closure season is stressful, but it is also one of the rare moments when an entire regional labor pool moves at once, which means employers in your area are primed to hire experienced grocery talent. The workers who get ahead of that wave, rather than joining it late, consistently land better roles faster. --- ## Related Articles - [Five Guys Store Closures and What They Mean for Workers in 2026](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/five-guys-store-closures-doomed-locations-workers-2026) - [Pizza Hut 250 Store Closures and Yum Brands Layoffs in 2026](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/pizza-hut-250-store-closures-2026-yum-brands-layoffs) - [Kohl's 27 Store Closures Across 15 States and Retail Jobs in 2026](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/kohls-27-store-closures-15-states-1100-locations-retail-jobs-2026) - [Claire's Shuts All 154 UK Stores and 1,300 Retail Jobs](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/claires-shuts-all-154-uk-stores-1300-retail-jobs) - [Smokey Bones Closing Stores in 2026 and Restaurant Jobs](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/smokey-bones-closing-stores-2026-restaurant-jobs) - [West Marine Bankruptcy and Retail Layoffs in 2026](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/west-marine-bankruptcy-2026-retail-layoffs) - [Nike Cuts 1,400 Jobs in a 2026 Turnaround and Retail Layoffs](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/nike-cuts-1400-jobs-2026-turnaround-retail-layoffs) - [Target's 2026 Rebound and What It Means for Retail Job Seekers](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/target-2026-rebound-retail-job-seekers) - [Apple Store Closures in Three States and Retail Workers' Jobs in 2026](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/apple-store-closures-3-states-retail-workers-jobs-2026) - [Laid Off in 2026 and How to Apply for Unemployment Benefits Now](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/laid-off-2026-apply-unemployment-benefits-now) - [US Retail Sales Jump in February 2026 and the Hiring Impact for Retail Workers](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/us-retail-sales-jump-february-2026-hiring-impact-retail-workers) - [Dollar Tree and Starbucks Open New Stores in a 2026 Retail Hiring Wave](https://www.metaintro.com/blog/dollar-tree-starbucks-new-stores-retail-hiring-2026) --- ## People Also Asked ### Q: How many Albertsons stores are closing in 2026? A: At least a dozen Albertsons locations have closed or been marked for closure so far in 2026, following roughly two to three dozen closures in 2025. More than half of the 2026 closures are in California and Texas, with additional shutdowns in New Jersey, Connecticut, Nevada and Washington, D.C. The count continues to rise as new WARN filings are submitted. ### Q: Will Albertsons workers lose their jobs or get transferred? A: It depends on your role. Albertsons is laying off 295 corporate and divisional support staff with severance and benefits, but for store-level associates at closing locations the company has repeatedly said it intends to place as many people as possible at nearby stores. If your store is closing, ask in writing about transfer options and how your seniority carries over before assuming a layoff. ### Q: Why is Albertsons closing stores in 2026? A: The closures trace back to the failed 24.6 billion dollar Kroger merger that courts and the FTC blocked in December 2024. Without that deal, Albertsons is operating as a standalone company under heavy pressure from Walmart, Costco and H-E-B, so it is closing underperforming stores and cutting corporate overhead as it reassesses its more than 2,200 store footprint. Losing a grocery job through no fault of your own is exhausting, and you deserve a faster path to your next role than scrolling job boards alone. If you are looking for your next opportunity in retail, grocery or beyond, [Metaintro](https://www.metaintro.com) puts an AI career-intelligence platform to work surfacing the openings that actually fit your experience, so you spend less time searching and more time interviewing. 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