TOUR: Shaw's - Hudson, MA

Shaw's

Opened: 2016

Owner: Albertsons Companies

Previous Tenants: Hannaford

Cooperative: none

Location: 201 Washington St, Hudson, MA

Photographed: July 7, 2024

Time for another Shaw's! This one is an older store, but it's only actually been a Shaw's since 2016 when they acquired the store from Hannaford in the Ahold Delhaize merger. The store was divested because of its proximity to an Ahold-owned Stop & Shop, and I believe this was the only store to be divested that went to Shaw's. (One other went to Albertsons, a Giant in Maryland that became an ACME.) It's only around 40,000 square feet, about 20,000 square feet smaller than the Stop & Shop across the street, and feels significantly smaller. But it's also in better shape, and was renovated shortly after it opened. Still there, are quite a few reminders of the Hannaford past -- and I don't know who (if anyone) was here before Hannaford.

The produce department is decidedly better-stocked than Stop & Shop's! Still, some of that is just an illusion because the space is smaller so there are fewer linear feet of shelving to fill.

There's no grand aisle here, but the produce department is in the front-left corner. Deli and meat/seafood counters are in the back-left corner, with meat on the back wall. Dairy and frozen are on the right side with bakery in the front-right corner.

This is a very nice store, although it was likely given a large renovation by Hannaford not too long before it was sold. I wouldn't be surprised if the flooring, tile backsplash, and fixtures are left over from Hannaford.

A combined meat/seafood service counter at the back, a bit foggy because of the hot and high-humidity July day that I visited.

I personally like these black promotional signs, and I think they look good in this store.

The grocery aisles still feel quite a bit like a Hannaford, although the category markers are different. I like these but don't see them in too many Shaw's.

This is my Shaw's, but This is your ACME.

I assume all of the fixtures are left over from Hannaford, but they're mostly in good shape.

It's a little disconcerting to see the Albertsons brands in this store that still feels a lot like a Hannaford, but if you didn't know it was previously a Hannaford, it's a very nice store. The perimeter in particular looked really good.

Bakery is in the front-right corner, again with Hannaford fixtures and bones but new Shaw's decor.

This store seems to do a lower volume than the larger Stop & Shop across the street, but is also smaller. So it seems to do alright, although both are very much lower volume than the Market Basket across town.

And that's where we're headed tomorrow! Come back to check it out.