BUSINESS MEMO: SUPERMARKET TO CLOSE

Schnucks Markets Inc. will close its Rolla store next month.

The Rolla facility, one of the National supermarkets Schnucks purchased in 1995, is a 24,000-square-foot, full-service supermarket.

Craig Schnuck, chief executive of Schnucks, said it was difficult for a small market to compete effectively for customers against much larger stores in a city the size of Rolla.

The store had lost sales after a Wal-Mart Supercenter opened in Rolla in 1992. Rolla has four other supermarkets -- Karsh's, Country Mart, Kroger and Aldi's.

Schnucks closed its 33,000-square-foot store in Cape Girardeau in July, leaving a 55,000-square-foot supermarket open at 19 S. Kingshighway.