Ralphs gains share of region’s grocery business

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New data show that Ralphs is winning the local grocery market wars.

The grocery chain, which has 185 stores in Los Angeles and Orange counties, had a 19.04% share of the market in the second quarter of the year, up almost a full point from the first quarter, according to the Shelby Report, a research firm.

For a report on the price wars between the supermarkets, click here.

Albertsons continues to lose the most business from among the large chains. Its market share slide by almost a third of a percentage point to 12.15% in the second quarter, and it lost nearly three-quarters of a percentage point for the first six months of the year.

Vons has held steady at a 14.78% share.

Trader Joe’s has gained about a tenth a percentage point over the last two quarters and is now the fourth-largest grocer in the region, with a 6.33% share. Stater Bros is No. 5 with 6.06%, a slight decline from the first quarter.

After that, there is a big drop-off. Smart & Final is sixth with 3.23%, followed by Whole Foods at 3.1%, Superior Grocers at 2.87% and Wal-Mart Supercenters at 2.75%

--- Jerry Hirsch
Twitter.com/LATimesJerry