Alaskan & Proud Now Part of Unified Grocers

Unified Grocers, the largest wholesale grocery distributor in the western United States, has welcomed Williams Inc., which operates four retail food stores under the Alaskan & Proud banner in southeastern Alaska, as its newest member. Previously supplied by Supervalu for more than 20 years, Williams will begin receiving groceries and other supplies from Los Angeles-based Unified on Aug. 1.

The Alaskan & Proud banner consists of two full-service, conventional supermarkets in Ketchikan and Juneau; a community grocery store in Thorne Bay; and a convenience store in Ketchikan. The four locations range in size from 7,000 square feet to 43,000 square feet and employ about 220 associates in their surrounding communities.

According to United Grocers CEO Al Plamann, “The Alaskan & Proud organization is highly regarded, not only by their customers, but [also] throughout our industry.”

To help ensure a smooth transition and the long-term success of the banner, Unified is working closely with the Alaskan & Proud team to provide a wide array of retail services and merchandising support across all product categories and throughout the stores.

“Unified’s ability to offer our stores a broad range of products and services to meet our local shoppers' needs will enable us to better compete in our unique marketplace,” said Ben Williams, president of Ketchikan-based Williams. “I believe our customers will see a noticeable difference in their overall shopping experience as a result of our relationship with Unified.”

Unified Grocers is a retailer-owned wholesale grocery distributor that supplies independent retailers throughout the western United States.