Supermarket slump?

The staffing cutbacks announced July 14 for Haggen supermarkets throughout Southern California have included San Diego.

A conversation July 15 with two North Park Haggen employees (who had to remain anonymous) revealed that the store had “laid off four employees” and some full-time employees have gone to part-time status.

That store, at 2235 University Avenue, has shown an obvious reduction in business since it was an Albertsons store. Lines are not long at checkout counters, and there's always plenty of parking available. An employee said that while the North Park outlet has slowed down, “we're doing better” than the Mission Hills Haggen store at 422 W. Washington Street, right across from a large Vons store.

The Reader requested more information about the North Park and other San Diego County Haggen stores from both the company's Pacific Southwest division and its public relations company, but there was no immediate response.

According to hoovers.com, the company was founded in 1933 in Bellingham, Washington. “In 2011, private equity firm Comvest acquired a majority stake in the chain.”

Industry analysts had predicted months ago that Haggen's entry into the Southern California grocery business would prove difficult.