Wilco Food Center, which opened its first grocery store in Miller in 1960, has signed a deal to sell its four locations to Strack & Van Til and WiseWay.
The transitions, for an undisclosed sum, and the name changes, should take place by the end of August, according to a news release issued by Wilco President Linda Armstrong.
Strack & Van Til, which has signed a purchase agreement with Wilco, will buy three of Wilco's four locations, the anchor store in Lowell plus its Cedar Lake and Rensselaer stores, Strack & Van Til President Dave Wilkinson said Tuesday.
"We just felt Strack & Van Til has a really strong presence in Lake County, but not in south Lake County, and it would be a good opportunity for the Wilco group," Wilkinson said.
With the purchase, Strack & Van Til stores will number 33. About half are throughout the Chicago area and half in Northwest Indiana, Wilkinson said.
Strack & Van Til opened its first store in Highland in 1960, Wilkinson said.
All 200 employees will be retained, he said.
WiseWay is purchasing Amelia's Market in Winfield.
"Wilco is in our network of stores, so it made an awful lot of sense," WiseWay/PayLow President Don Weiss said.
Amelia's will be the fifth WiseWay store, adding to its two Valparaiso stores, and its Chesterton and Hobart stores. The company also owns three PayLow stores, two in Merrillville and one in Gary, and a Wise Guys liquor store in Merrillville.
Weiss said all 49 Amelia's employees will retain jobs within the WiseWay company.