Competitors angle for A&P’s prime real estate

With the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea, which owns the A&P, Food Emporium, Pathmark and Waldbaums, well known to be in financial hot water, its competitors are angling to take over not just its market share, but its vast real estate holdings, according to Crain’s. Among the vultures are John Catsimatidis, owner of Gristedes, and Howard Glickberg, owner of Fairway Market, among others. The A&P has suffered as Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s have thrived over the past decade. For the past seven quarter, the company has been in the red, and Standard & Poor’s downgraded the company’s credit rating to CCC in July. A spokesperson for the grocer said it plans to sell noncore assets in an attempt to turn a profit once again. The Montvale, N.J.-based A&P has 48 properties across the five boroughs, and its rare that buildings with enough space for a supermarket become available in the city. Some have speculated that the A&P will sell off Food Emporium, which has 16 Manhattan stores. [Crain’s]