Fresh & Easy plans to close in U.S.; 9 remaining Arizona stores to shutter

Struggling grocery chain Fresh & Easy said Wednesday that it is intending to close its nine metro Phoenix stores along with its other 88 locations, which are in Nevada and California.

A statement from the El Segundo, Calif.-based company said that it is hopeful to find a buyer for all or part of the business.

“Over the last two years, we have been working hard to build a new Fresh & Easy. While we made progress on stemming our losses and moving the business closer to break even, unfortunately we have been unable to obtain financing and the liquidity necessary to continue to fund the business going forward,” the statement said. “As we start the process for an organized wind down of the business, we continue to work to sell all or part of the business.”

Actual closing dates were unavailable from the company.

For the past two years, Fresh & Easy has been owned by The Yucaipa Cos., a Los Angeles-based private-equity firm. Yucaipa purchased the stores after British retailer Tesco, Fresh & Easy's original parent company, announced that it was pulling out of the U.S. grocery market.

Before and after the sale, Fresh & Easy has struggled financially. The chain shuttered five of its Phoenix area locations in April. The grocer how has three locations in Phoenix, two in Gilbert and one each in Avondale, Chandler, Mesa and Scottsdale.

At one time, there were 24 Fresh & Easy stores in Arizona.

Fresh & Easy is the second grocery chain to announce closings in the past month. In September, Haggen, a Pacific Northwest chain, filed court papers seeking to close its five remaining grocery stores in Arizona and most of its other stores in other Western states.

Reach the reporter at sue.doerfler@arizonarepublic.com.