The Jim Pattison Group, a prominent Canadian conglomerate with operations across Canada and the U.S., has acquired Save Mart Cos. from its current owner, private equity firm Kingswood Capital Management, which has held the retailer since 2022.
Save Mart’s current management team, including Executive Chairman Shane Sampson, will continue to lead the company, according to a spokesperson for Save Mart who spoke with Supermarket News. Further details about the acquisition have not yet been disclosed. Attempts to reach a spokesperson for The Jim Pattison Group for comment were unsuccessful.
Headquartered in Modesto, Calif., Save Mart operates nearly 200 supermarkets under banners such as Save Mart, Lucky, FoodMaxx, and Maxx Value in California and Nevada.
The acquisition by The Jim Pattison Group also includes Save Mart’s Yosemite Wholesale and Save Mart office divisions, according to United Food and Commercial Workers Local 8-Golden State, which represents 6,000 union workers at Save Mart. The union reported that Save Mart intends to maintain normal operations.
Founded in 1952 by Nick Tocco and Mike Piccinini, Save Mart was California’s largest family-owned grocer until it was acquired by Kingswood Capital Management.
The Jim Pattison Group’s Pattison Food Group division, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, is a major grocery wholesaler in Canada, serving over 2,000 independent retailers. In addition to its grocery wholesale operations, it owns and operates several retail banners across Canada, including Save-On Foods, Quality Foods, and Choices Markets.
In 2021, the Pattison Food Group expanded into the U.S. with the acquisition of Roth’s Fresh Markets, a nine-store retailer based in Salem, Ore., serving Oregon’s mid-Willamette Valley, approximately 380 miles north of Save Mart’s northernmost locations.
