Lucky Opens Small-Format Grocery Store in San Francisco “Food Desert”

Lucky Supermarkets, a grocery banner operated by Save Mart (Modesto, Calif.), has opened its first small-format store.

Taking over a former Walgreens location in San Francisco’s Bayview community, the new market measures 9459 square feet. Efficiency is the goal of the store, which carries about 15 percent of Lucky’s typical SKU count and includes convertible check stands that can be manned by staff or serve as self-checkouts.

Kate Sofis, Executive Director of the city’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development, welcomes the new store, as it sits in what is classified by the USDA as a “food desert” due to the relative lack of grocery retailers there.

“The restoration of this once-vacant space into a community grocery store that features products from our local entrepreneurs and small businesses is an example of stewardship in support of the community vision,” Sofis said.

Lucky Bayview’s offerings include organic fruits, vegetables and seasonal products from locally based Earl’s Organic Produce. It also offers products from other Bayview vendors, including Tallio’s Coffee & Tea, Bayview Pasta, Speakeasy Brewing and Yvonne’s Southern Sweets.

The Save Mart Companies operates 200-plus stores under the banners of Save Mart, Lucky and FoodMaxx.