Vons owner signs online grocery pact

Thursday, June 8, 2000 | 11:27 a.m.

Safeway Inc., owner of Vons grocery stores in Las Vegas, signed an agreement with GroceryWorks.com calling for the Dallas-based online company to be Safeway's exclusive provider of Internet customer shopping.

Safeway spokeswoman Debra Lambert said online grocery shopping will be available in 16 markets by the end of 2001. It has not yet been determined whether Las Vegas would be among the initial markets included in the national rollout.

Under terms of the deal, a Safeway subsidiary has invested $10 million in GroceryWorks, assigned a long-term product purchase agreement, and received 50 percent of GroceryWorks' stock. Safeway expects to invest an additional $20 million in the near future.

All the products available at Safeway or its subsidiaries will be available online. Lambert said GroceryWorks.com will also be responsible for 21 fulfillment centers nationwide.

Based in Pleasanton, Calif., Safeway currently operates 26 Vons supermarkets in the Metro Las Vegas area.