Save Mart Supermarkets is an American grocery store operator. It owns and operates stores under the names of Save Mart, S-Mart Foods, Lucky and FoodMaxx. The stores are located in northern California and northern Nevada.
On November 27, 2006, Save Mart announced an agreement to acquire 132 Albertsons stores in California and Nevada. Save Mart officially began operating the stores in late February 2007, and the acquired stores were to be re-branded during the year. Those in the San Francisco Bay Area were rebranded as Lucky, and the rest would operate under the Save Mart banner.
1984 – Save Mart partners with two other retailers to launch Mid-Valley Dairy, producer of Sunnyside Farms products. SMART Refrigerated Transport opens in Turlock, California.
1985 – Bob Piccinini purchases Save Mart Supermarkets and becomes CEO.
1986 – Opens its first two Food Maxx stores in Bakersfield, California in partnership with the Fleming Company.
1988 – Partners with two other retailers to open Sunnyside Farms Dairy product plant in Turlock.
1989 – Acquires 27 Fry's Supermarkets in the San Francisco Bay Area.
1991 – Helps found and becomes a voting partner in Super Store Industries.
1997 – Acquires 10 Lucky stores in California.
2003 – Acquires 25 Food 4 Less stores and rebrands them as FoodMaxx.
Save Mart Supermarkets includes a number of store banners and private label product brands. Save Mart stores are full-service grocery stores with a broad product offering, including fresh produce, bakery goods, deli foods and ethnic foods. Lucky Stores are full-service grocery stores with a broad product offering, including fresh produce, bakery goods, deli foods, and ethnic foods. FoodMaxx is a warehouse-concept grocery store. MaxxValue Foods offers products at warehouse-store prices without a store club membership fee.
Store brands
Sunny Select – grocery products
Market Essentials - grocery products
Valu Time – packaged foods and general merchandise
Super Store Industries also produces and packages bottled beverages, cultured dairy products, and frozen dairy products for several brands, including Sunnyside Farms yogurt, Stater Brothers ice cream, and Minute Maid orange juice. SSI owns and operates Sunnyside Farms and Sunnyside Farms Dairy.
Yosemite Wholesale is a dry and packaged goodwarehouse servicing all of the company's stores.
Save Mart Supermarkets Distribution Center services all of the company's stores.
SMART Refrigerated Transport is a trucking firm that transports dry groceries, frozen foods, ice, and novelties to all of Save Mart Supermarkets’ stores. The company also works as an outside contractor hauling products for other retailers.
2011 Lucky Stores card-swipe thefts
In November 2011, hundreds of Lucky customers throughout the San Francisco Bay Area were reported to be victims of card-swipe thefts the previous month. The crime resulted from the surreptitious placement of card-scanning modules at the stores' self-serve checkout stands. Card information of customers, including personal identification numbers may have been retrieved by the criminals. Some customers reported having money withdrawn from their accounts. The company advised affected customers to contact their financial institutions. Lucky also advised some customers to close their accounts.
In a 2013 settlement with 35 California district attorneys, the company agreed to pay $2.55 million in civil penalties, costs and expenses for violating state law on storage, handling and disposal of hazardous materials, including items like bleaches, batteries, electronic devices, ignitible liquids, aerosol products and cleaning products. In 2015 the company agreed to pay $277,319 in back pay and damages to distribution center workers in Vacaville and Roseville. A U.S. Department of Labor investigation found the company failed to include bonuses in the employee rate of pay when computing overtime.
