Times Supermarkets Says ‘Aloha’ to Unified Grocers

Times Supermarkets, a chain of 20 conventional supermarkets in Hawaii with stores on the islands of Oahu, Maui, and Kauai has tapped regional wholesaler Unified Grocers as its new grocer supplier, and will begin receiving groceries and other products from Unified during the second week of July.

, said, "We welcome Times Supermarkets to the Unified family of independent grocery retailers and we look forward to enhancing their success in the markets in which they operate for many years to come,” said Al Plamann, CEO, Unified. “Adding a respected retailer such as Times to our growing customer base will, we believe, create several new business opportunities for us in Hawaii."

Times operates 17 supermarkets under the Times Supermarkets banner, two stores under the Fujioka's Wine Times banner, and one store under the Shima's Supermarket banner. Recently, the company completed the purchase of five Big Save Value Centers on Kauai and those stores will officially become part of Times Supermarket family on July 25, bringing the total number of stores in the chain to 25.

"We believe that Unified's wide selection of products and efficient distribution systems will help us become more competitive in the months and years ahead," said Bob Stout, president, Times Supermarkets. "Additionally, we are thrilled about Unified's private label offering and we believe our customers are going to find a lot to like about it, as well."

To help facilitate a smooth transition to Unified as the company's primary grocery supplier, a team of Unified employees will begin working at Times stores in early July, providing a wide array of retail services and merchandising support across all product categories and throughout every store.

Times Supermarkets had previously been supplied by C&S Wholesale Grocers.

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