Dominick's grocery stores eleven Chicago locations are shutting down and becoming part of the Mariano's brand Chicago news station ABC 7 reported Saturday.
Four other stores are also turning into jewel stores. Fifty-seven others are locking up for good, and leaving over 6,000 employees without employment.
"The idea is that we will help people who want to we will help them retrain and enter the workforce and have other opportunities," Anastasia Usova told Chicago's ABC 7. "It doesn't matter if they are in their 40's, 50's or 60's they can get the skills and get a job with security."
Rahm Emanuel, Chicago Mayor established a Grocery Store Task Force in order to assist individuals impacted by the news ABC reported. Other city officials see it as a positive.
"I think it would be a very smart move for them to hire experienced, trained workers who understand the community, who live in the community, and understand what the food business is all about," Joe Moore, a Chicago Alderman told ABC 7.
The stores turn off their lights at 12 p.m.
"You're throwing 6,500 people into the unemployment pot," Bruno Belmonte told ABC 7 "It's already saturated to begin with, now you're throwing all of these people on top of it."
Those who still need to pickup their medicine can still do so through an open door ABC 7 reported.
Mariano will have 29 stores in the Chicago area by the end of next year when all is said and done according to The Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel. Ten of these are expected to in the heart of Chicago, with 19 in the suburbs The Journal Sentinel reported. The company also plans to improve, and upgrade its stores throughout Milwaukee.
Safeway, an affiliate of Dominick's sold stores to Roundy's, headquartered in Milwaukee in order to focus its efforts on other aspects it is thriving in according to The Wall Street Journal.
