GROVELAND, Fla. — The Kroger Co. announced Nov. 18 it will close three eCommerce fulfillment centers at the end of January – including one in Groveland – “to optimize its fulfillment network,” according to a news release.
Orlando Business Journal received an email sent to a Central Florida customer in Lake County, stating Kroger will end its grocery delivery service in the area Feb. 1.
“We don’t make these decisions lightly, and we understand the impact this has on our customers and communities,” the email read.
Similar emails from around Florida have been posted throughout the day to social media.
Taken together, the facility closure and cessation of service appear to indicate the grocer is pulling out of the region, though no confirmation has been made.
Efforts by OBJ to reach a Kroger’s spokesperson and the city of Groveland were unsuccessful.
The facility, which is an anchor for Groveland’s massive Ford Commerce Park, had 1,430 employees as of Sept. 23, 2025. The more than 1,000-acre logistics hub is found near the interchange of U.S. 27, Florida’s Turnpike and State Road 19.
The other closures will take place at facilities located in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, and Frederick, Maryland. The Cincinnati-based grocer said it plans to monitor the performance of its remaining facilities before making any further changes.
The closures are expected to result in “impairment and related charges” of roughly $2.6 billion in third quarter 2025 because of “the automated fulfillment network not meeting financial expectations.”
Meanwhile, Kroger said it expects to improve its eCommerce profitability by approximately $400 million in 2026 while leaning on relationships with third-party delivery services such as Instacart, DoorDash and Uber Eats.
The company said it will “continue to take advantage of automated customer fulfillment to increase customer engagement, capacity, and improve productivity and profitability” in areas where it sees higher density of demand.
Ron Sargent, Kroger’s chairman and CEO, said in a prepared statement, “eCommerce remains a core part of serving customers” and that the company is “building on a strong foundation with five consecutive quarters of double-digit eCommerce sales growth and increased profitability improvements.”
“We are taking decisive action to make shopping easier, offer faster delivery times, provide more options to our customers, and we expect to deliver profitable sales growth as a result,” Sargent said.
Kroger opened the Groveland fulfillment center in 2021 to much celebration, including an event attended by its CEO. It was to be a regional hub for nearby “spoke” facilities in places like Tampa. Construction of Kroger’s fulfillment center was reported to be valued at around $55 million at the time of completion.
At the time, the grocer’s entrance into the Florida market via eCommerce fueled speculation a brick-and-mortar market expansion might follow.
That never materialized, however, and now it appears the grocer is exiting the area altogether.
Kroger stock is up 15.09% year-over-year to more than $66 per share since a 52-week low of $57.08 last November. Shares reached a high of $74.90 in August. The company has its next earnings report scheduled for Dec. 4.
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