The Sweetbay supermarket chain has been sold to Bi-Lo Holdings of Jacksonville.
The $265 million deal includes 72 Sweetbay stores, 72 Harveys stores and 11 Reid’s stores, the Tampa Tribune said. Bi-Lo may also acquire 10 Sweetbay properties that were shut down earlier in the year.
Bi-Lo purchased the supermarket chains from Sweetbay’s parent company, the Delhaize Group of Belgium, the Tribune said. The purchase is the second major supermarket acquisition for Bi-Lo which bought Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. last year for $560 million.
Prior to the Sweetbay purchase, Bi-Lo was already the 9th largest supermarket chain in the country with control of 688 stores, the Tribune said.
A published report last week said the chain was close to a deal. In February, the company said it planned to close 33 stores between Homosassa and Naples, creating a lot of new commercial real estate opportunities.