BELLINGHAM, Wash. — A judge has approved a bid by Albertsons to take over the remaining Haggen grocery stores, bringing Haggen's bankruptcy proceedings essentially to a close.
Albertsons will pay about $106 million for 29 stores in Washington and Oregon that were owned by the Bellingham-based company.
The Bellingham Herald reports U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross signed an order approving the sale on Tuesday.
Albertsons spokesman Brian Dowling said in a written statement the company is pleased with the court approval. He said Albertsons expects to close on the deal in the next several weeks.
Haggen expanded to Southern Nevada in 2014 by acquiring four stores from Vons — one in Boulder City and three in Las Vegas — and three from Albertsons, all in Henderson. That was part of a massive, Western U.S. expansion in which Haggen acquired 146 stores from Albertsons and Vons owner Safeway Inc.
Albertsons had reached a deal to buy Safeway for about $9 billion, and to get Federal Trade Commission approval of the buyout, the companies agreed to sell 168 stores nationally. Haggen acquired most of them, and as a result, it grew overnight from 18 locations and 2,000 employees to 164 stores and more than 10,000 workers.
However, Haggen quickly sank under its own girth, failing to convert the stores successfully.
In July 2015, Haggen said it was laying off employees locally and in California and Arizona; in August, news reports said the company planned to close or sell 27 stores, including in Nevada; and in a 10-day span in September, Haggen sued Albertsons for more than $1 billion in damages, filed for bankruptcy protection and announced that, given its need to slim down and save money, its Pacific Southwest regional CEO had “left the company” amid a corporate consolidation.
Albertsons says it plans to keep the Haggen name on 15 stores in Washington.