A relatively small grocery chain from the Pacific Northwest is close to closing a deal that gives the rapidly-growing firm control of several Southern California grocery stores in Long Beach, San Pedro, the Inland Empire and elsewhere.

The incoming company, named Haggen (pronounced like “Reagan”), has 18 stores in Washington and Oregon and is poised to close a deal to buy more than 160 supermarkets by the end of January. Those stores include Vons and Albertsons outlets ranging across Southern California.

For California shoppers who are unfamiliar with the Haggen name, the company chief executive for California, Nevada and Arizona, Bill Shaner, emphasized that Haggen is a full-service grocery store and not a boutique. The company’s website frequently uses words like “fresh,” “organic” and “local.” Shaner said Haggen stores blend elements of traditional stores like Albertsons and Vons with aspects of higher-end stores like Whole Foods and Gelson’s.

Shaner said Haggen’s goal in moving to Southern California is “to take something we think is already good and make it better.”

Assuming the deal goes through, Haggen is on a pace to put its signs on 83 California stores this year. Altogether, the company would have 164 stores in California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada and Arizona if the merger is completed as planned.

A grocery industry analyst said Wednesday the development is part of a trend of consolidation within the supermarket industry. Haggen and its majority owner, a Florida private equity firm called Comvest Partners, got their chance at their large-scale expansion after grocery giants Albertsons and Safeway made a $9.4 billion merger deal in March 2013.

Albertsons and Safeway decided to sell more than 160 stores to Haggen and three other buyers in order to win federal approval for their deal. The government has yet to approve the merger or Haggen’s purchases, and a Federal Trade Commission spokeswoman said Wednesday there has been no new update to that process.

“You’ll see much more merger and acquisition activity as more and more of the grocery chains consolidate,” said Burt Flickinger III, managing director of Strategic Resource Group, a New York City retail consultant group.

Mergers are motivated by traditional grocers’ need to compete with the buying power of big box chains like Walmart and Costco, he said.

For the consumer, that should translate into lower prices, he said.

He also said Haggen’s arrival into the state also will give shoppers improved options to buy fresh goods produced near the communities where stores are located.

Haggen’s arrival into California also could mean big money for Unified Grocers, the Commerce-based grocery wholesaler that is set to be Haggen’s key supplier in California, Arizona and Nevada.

Unified Grocers communications director Paul Dingsdale said the company stands to earn an additional $750 million in revenue by keeping Haggen store shelves stocked. The company had revenues of nearly $3.9 billion in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, he said.

Dingsdale also said Unified Grocers will be able to offer an additional 3,000 different products across the grocery spectrum as a result of its relationship with Haggen. The details are still being worked out.

“I don’t think we’ll see a massive difference on Day One,” Dingsdale said. “They’ll respond to the marketplace.”

Assuming the deal is approved, Shaner said the company plans to begin converting California stores in March. Haggen plans to keep existing Vons and Albertsons employees and managers in place and will assume existing labor union contracts.

Haggen and its parent company have not disclosed financial details of their plans, including the purchase price for the new stores.

Albertsons and Safeway plan to continue operating about 350 groceries in California after the merger closes, Albertsons spokeswoman Christine Wilcox said.