Kroger's 24-Hour Store Test Draws Sharp Pushback From Industry Veterans

Kroger is testing a return to 24-hour stores, and industry veterans who ran overnight grocery operations say the move is not worth the risk.

The Cincinnati Enquirer reported that the grocer launched a pilot program keeping stores open around the clock. Kroger is testing one 24-hour location in Cincinnati and five more in Indiana. The company operated 24-hour stores before the COVID-19 pandemic but shifted those overnight hours to cleaning and sterilizing stores during the outbreak.

The reaction from Supermarket News followers on LinkedIn has been largely negative.

Richard Dorfner, a former store director at Cub Foods who managed 24-hour stores for years, said there is no upside worth the small sales increase the grocer may see.

"The risks to employees and customers make it not worth this strategy," Dorfner posted on LinkedIn. "Ten years ago, it was a losing formula and in today's culture it makes even less sense."

Staffing is the core problem, according to Roy Wade. He argued that Kroger cannot support the hours it already runs.

"They already have 100,000-square-foot stores that are woefully understaffed," Wade wrote. "After 7 p.m., you can walk through aisle after aisle and barely find an employee because so many of them have been pulled to help with pickup orders."

Barry Blumentritt, who is retired after 40 years supervising all aspects of grocery, framed the security risk in blunter terms.

"The risk does not come into play? Theft? Drunks on beer runs? Nothing good happens after midnight," he posted.

The pilot comes as Kroger battles a sales slump. Earlier this month, the grocer trimmed its outlook for full-year identical-store sales growth, excluding fuel, to less than 1%.

Kroger now expects full-year identical sales excluding fuel to increase between 0.2% and 0.8%, down from previous guidance of 1% to 2% growth. The reduced outlook includes an estimated negative impact of 140 basis points from the Inflation Reduction Act, which affects pharmacy pricing.

The six-store test will show whether overnight hours can lift sales enough to justify the staffing and security concerns that veterans say sank the format a decade ago.