SANFORD — Save-A-Lot, an independently owned grocery store  in the Marden’s Plaza on lower Main Street closed abruptly Wednesday.

A sign posted on the door Thursday morning said the closure is permanent. 

Owner John Hammontree was inside the store  at mid-morning Thursday, but declined to answer questions about the closure or how many workers were affected. He said he didn’t have time to talk.

A woman who identified herself on social media as an employee at the Sanford store said the closure was because of a lack of business.

Hammontree owns the Save-A-Lot store on St. John Street in Portland and in a spring 2010 interview prior to the Sanford store opening,  said he also owned stores in South Paris and in Gorham, New Hampshire. 

During that 2010 interview, he estimated the 14,000- square-foot Sanford store would employ between 12 and 20 full and part-time workers. A store employee late Thursday said eight people worked at the Sanford store.

Some shoppers Thursday were unaware of the closure, like Rev. Sue Murphy, who stopped by to shop for a family that needed help.

“Is really sad,” said Murphy, noting the stores low prices and friendly, helpful staff.

One woman said she’s been at the store just a few days ago to buy baking supplies, like chocolate chips. “I liked their brand, and is was so much cheaper,” she said.

Save- A-Lot is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Supervalu, Inc., the parent company of Shaw’s supermarkets and several other national supermarket chains. The Sanford store was among 1,280  Save-A-Lot markets across the country. Most stores are independently owned and operated under agreement with Supervalu, Inc. Founded in 1977, the chain is headuartered in St. Louis County, Missouri.

Corporate spokeswoman Chon Tomlin said she couldn’t shed any light on the reasons for the closure or the number of employees who lost their jobs because the store was independently owned, and operated under a licensing agreement with  Save-A-Lot.

Marty Perlmutter of the Maine CareerCenter’s Rapid Response team that assists workers facing job loss due to downsizing or closures, said the Rapid Response office would determine a course of action and would likely have plans in place by noon today. Perlmutter said given the demand for workers, some employees may find jobs quickly.

York County’s unemployment rate in October was 3 percent.

Save-A-Lot stores typically carry both custom label brands as well as a selection of national brands, meat, produce, dairy and frozen foods. Hammontree  in the 2010 interview described Save-A-Lot as a “niche” store that may carry the most commonly used product size, rather than a selection in various sizes.

According to information on the Save-A-Lot website, the company’s edited assortment format means that stores carry only the most frequently purchased grocery items.

As well, Save-A-Lot helps reduce labor costs by procuring, shipping and merchandising products in custom cartons, and customers bag their own groceries.

Sanford grocery shoppers have an array of markets from which to buy their groceries, including three large supermarkets — Hannaford, Shaw’s and Wal-Mart, and three locally-owned markets — Roger’s Supa Dolla, Jerry’s Market and Sleeper’s Market.

Back in October, Supervalu Inc. announced it planned to sell its Save-A-Lot to  the Toronto, Canada-based private equity firm Onex, for about $1.37 billion, according to an Oct. 17 Wall Street Journal story. The  WSJ report said the sale expected to close at the end of January.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or twells@journaltribune.com.

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