Cape Schnucks unaffected by company's second closing since the pandemic

St. Louis-based Schnucks Markets said its Cape Girardeau store, opened in 1976, is unaffected by the 81-year old company’s decision announced this week to close its only outlet in Iowa.

The Bettendorf, Iowa, store, which opened in 2005, will close Aug. 16 due to poor sales, company spokesman Paul Simon said.

The 80 employees, which Schnucks calls “associates,” will be offered transfers to other stores at the same rate of pay, according to a release. Those who decline to transfer will receive a severance package.

The Bettendorf store is the second Schnucks to close during the coronavirus pandemic.

The supermarket chain, founded by Edwin and Anna Schnuck in 1939, also closed its Oakwood store in Alton, Illinois, on March 16 due to poor sales and Schnucks made the shutdown permanent April 9.

Schnucks, a third-generation family-owned grocery and pharmacy firm, ranks No. 67 on the Progressive Grocer’s 2020 list of top food retailers in North America.

“We don’t have any additional store closing announcements at this time,” Simon said.

“We are always evaluating profitability, customer expectations and patterns, (plus) future actions that could position (Schnucks) for continued success,” he said.

The Cape Girardeau Schnucks, 19 S. Kingshighway, has 150 employees and is one of 111 supermarkets overall in the brand.

The company’s footprint will be reduced after mid-August from five states to four: Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.

Missouri has the most outlets, with 69 Schnucks stores.

The number will grow to 70 on Wednesday when Schnucks opens a new location at 111 S. Providence Road in Columbia, Missouri.