<p> It’s a bittersweet goodbye for most Chicago shoppers. Dozens of Dominick's stores in the area closed on Saturday, leaving little behind.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">As loyal Dominick’s customers lament this loss, they may not be without a local grocery store for long. So far, Safeway has only sold 15 of the 72 Dominick’s stores, 4 to Jewel-Osco and 11 to Roundy’s, the parent company of Mariano’s supermarkets. Although these stores will begin transitioning to their new banners as early as next month, will we soon begin to see other retailers take up the remaining 57 locations? Existing players in the competing market may have to re-evaluate additional locations before the remaining stores go dark.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> Jim Hertel, managing partner at Barrington-based Willard Bishop, a grocery consulting firm, tells the Chicago Tribune that people generally shop at several different grocery stores each month, and will be likely to return for a new offering – as long as the store doesn’t stay dark indefinitely.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> “If something happens a month from now, and the store gets remodeled and it becomes a new offering, it probably goes right back on the rotation anyway,” said Hertel. “You wouldn’t want to let it go for months and months, but I don’t think there’s a light switch that’s going to be turned off on Saturday night that is going to make it a very difficult restart.”<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> According to the Chicago Tribune, the Safeway real estate website listed 36 Dominick’s locations as available as of Friday, but the total number of unsold stores will likely shrink to about 20 after deals in the works are finalized. Nevertheless, Hertel says he doesn’t see a new player making a move to acquire all of them.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> Earlier this month, the city of Chicago formed a task force to find buyers for the remaining Dominick’s stores. Sources say that the bulk of unsold stores will likely be in the suburbs. The fate of several Dominick’s employees is still in question as well, as more than 6,000 may be in danger of layoffs. Jewel-Osco has said it will offer employment to 450 workers, while Mariano’s will be holding job fairs to fill its stores as well.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow as we follow the arrival of new stores in Chicago.</p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-12-28/business/ct-biz-1228-dominicks-20131228_1_unsold-chicago-area-stores-unsold-stores-safeway-inc" target="_new"> Chicago Tribune </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
