Abingdon, Kingsport Kroger stores on corporate closure list

The Kroger locations of Abingdo and Kingsport are not providing the sustained results company owners want, targeting those two and 58 other locations for closure.

A statement provided by the United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 400 confirmed those stores’ shutdown and the loss of a food source it will bring to rural areas. The union posted September 19 at the closing date for the Tri-Cities locations.

“Instead of investing billions of dollars in buying its own stock and paying legal fees for a doomed merger with Albertsons, plus millions more in compensation for corporate executives, Kroger needs to invest in better compensation for associates, better staffing in stores, and making store improvements to better serve their customers. Hard-working store associates and the customers who depend on them should not be made to pay the price for Kroger’s decisions,” the UCFW report online said.

The Kroger statement said the closures are also being completed to streamline operations and enhance the customer experience. Kroger recorded a 3.7 percent rise in first quarter sales of this year compared with 2024 and collected more than $45 million.

(IMAGE: United Food & Commercial Workers Union / Official website)