Safeway is one of the most recognized supermarket names in America — a chain with over 900 locations spread across the western United States, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C. But the company operating those stores today is not the same Safeway that generations of shoppers grew up with.
It is now a brand — one of 20 — operating under the umbrella of Albertsons Companies, a grocery giant that has been through one of the most turbulent ownership journeys in the history of American retail.
Who Owns Safeway Right Now in 2026?
Safeway is a wholly owned brand of Albertsons Companies, Inc., which trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol ACI. Albertsons acquired Safeway in January 2015 for approximately $9.2 billion, bringing together two of the biggest names in American grocery under one roof.
Albertsons Companies is not owned by a single entity. It is a publicly traded company with the largest single shareholder being Cerberus Capital Management, the private equity firm that built and rebuilt Albertsons over two decades. Cerberus holds approximately 30% of the company’s outstanding shares as of March 2026 — giving it significant influence over board decisions and long-term strategy. The company’s CEO is Vivek Sankaran, who has led Albertsons since April 2019.
Stories about who owns Morrisons and who owns Barnes and Noble follow a strikingly similar pattern — private equity firms taking over legacy retail brands and reshaping them from the inside.
Ownership and Key Stakeholders Table
| Owner / Shareholder | Type | Stake | Key Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. | Largest Shareholder | ~30% of Albertsons (ACI) | Private equity firm; built Albertsons; still its biggest single investor |
| BlackRock, Inc. | Institutional Investor | ~7–8.6% of ACI | World’s largest asset manager; passive index investor |
| The Vanguard Group | Institutional Investor | ~6–7.65% of ACI | Passive index fund giant; major institutional holder |
| Norges Bank Investment Management | Sovereign Wealth Fund | ~4.4% of ACI | Norway’s Government Pension Fund; long-term global equity investor |
| FMR LLC (Fidelity) | Institutional Investor | ~4.07% of ACI | Major active fund manager with consistent ACI position |
| State Street Corporation | Institutional Investor | ~2.55% of ACI | Manages SPDR ETFs; key passive institutional holder |
| Vivek Sankaran | CEO of Albertsons | Less than 1% insider stake | Leads Albertsons since April 2019; previously CEO of PepsiCo Foods |
| Safeway (brand) | Albertsons subsidiary | 100% owned by Albertsons | One of 20 retail banners under the Albertsons Companies umbrella |
The Origin Story: An Idaho Grocery Store and a Big Vision
The story of Safeway begins in 1915 in the small Idaho town of American Falls, where a young man named M.B. Skaggs purchased a tiny grocery store from his father for a modest sum.
Skaggs’ business philosophy was simple and powerful: give customers genuine value, keep profit margins narrow, and grow through discipline. That approach proved spectacularly successful. By 1926, he had opened 428 Skaggs stores in 10 states.
That same year, Skaggs almost doubled the size of his business by merging with 322 Safeway (formerly Selig) stores.
He incorporated the combined business as Safeway, Inc. — deliberately avoiding his own name because he believed a corporate chain that would outlive him should stand on its own identity. Two years later, in 1928, Safeway listed on the New York Stock Exchange and became one of the great American grocery institutions of the 20th century.
Through the Great Depression, Safeway became a pioneer — introducing produce pricing by the pound, adding “sell by” dates on perishables to assure freshness, and developing nutritional labels decades before they became standard. The brand built its reputation on reliability, value, and trust.
The Road to Albertsons: A Tale of Two Grocery Empires
For most of its modern history, Safeway operated as an independent publicly traded company. That changed dramatically in 2014, when Albertsons — backed by its private equity owner Cerberus Capital Management — announced it was acquiring Safeway for approximately $9.2 billion. The deal closed in January 2015.
Albertsons itself had its own complex history under Cerberus. In 2006, the original Albertsons was broken up and sold, with Cerberus leading a consortium — which also included Kimco Realty, Lubert-Adler Partners, and Klaff Realty — that acquired a significant portion of the stores.
Cerberus spent the next decade rebuilding Albertsons aggressively, acquiring regional chains and growing the company back into a national force. The purchase of Safeway was the crown jewel of that strategy.
Albertsons Companies went public on June 26, 2020, listing on the NYSE at $16.00 per share — ending roughly 14 years of private ownership under the Cerberus-led group. The IPO did not diminish Cerberus’ role, however. The firm retained its massive equity stake and continues to be the most influential single voice in Albertsons’ boardroom.
The $25 Billion Kroger Merger That Never Was
The most dramatic chapter in Safeway’s recent ownership story was not even specifically about Safeway — but it affected every store in the chain and shaped the company’s future in profound ways.
In October 2022, Kroger — the largest supermarket chain in the United States — announced it would acquire Albertsons Companies for approximately $25 billion, creating by far the biggest grocery retailer in the country. For Safeway, this would have meant becoming part of the Kroger empire — but it was not to be.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sued to block the merger in February 2024, arguing it would raise prices and reduce competition for consumers. Multiple state attorneys general joined the effort.
In December 2024, a federal judge and a state judge both blocked the deal on the same day. Albertsons terminated the merger agreement and immediately filed a lawsuit against Kroger, seeking billions of dollars in damages, claiming Kroger had failed to take sufficient action to secure regulatory approval.
Kroger called the claims baseless. The legal battle between the two companies continues in the courts.
The collapse of the deal left Albertsons — and by extension Safeway — navigating its future as an independent company, under pressure from shareholders who had been counting on the premium Kroger had agreed to pay.
Safeway in 2026: Store Closures and Restructuring
The post-merger fallout has been felt directly at Safeway stores. More Safeway store closures are coming in 2026, as parent company Albertsons continues to restructure its business following the failed merger with Kroger.
The chain has already shuttered at least three stores in 2026 — in California, Washington D.C., and one other location — and industry reports suggest more are on the way.
In the year before, Albertsons closed at least 30 stores across its various banners, including locations under Carrs, Albertsons, and United Supermarkets. Safeway operates approximately 912 stores as of 2026, primarily across the western United States, making it the largest single banner within the Albertsons portfolio.
Despite the closures, Safeway retains a deeply loyal customer base, particularly in California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona, and Colorado, where it is often the dominant neighborhood supermarket. The brand’s pharmacy services, fuel centers, Starbucks kiosks, and specialty departments — including bakery, deli, and floral — continue to be key differentiators in a fiercely competitive grocery market.
What Other Brands Does Albertsons Own Besides Safeway?
Safeway is just one of 20 banners operating under the Albertsons Companies umbrella — a fact that surprises many shoppers who think of these as completely separate chains.
The portfolio includes Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Shaw’s, ACME, Tom Thumb, Randalls, United Supermarkets, Pavilions, Star Market, and Carrs, among others.
The company operates stores across 35 states and the District of Columbia — making it the second-largest supermarket chain in North America after Kroger, even after the failed merger attempt.
Each banner maintains its own regional identity and branding while sharing back-end operations, purchasing power, and technology platforms across the Albertsons Companies group. This is the same strategy that makes Safeway in California feel different from Shaw’s in New England, even though both are managed from the same corporate headquarters in Boise, Idaho.
What About Safeway in Canada?
It is worth noting that Safeway Canada is a completely separate business from Safeway US. The Canadian Safeway chain — which operates 135 full-service locations mostly in Western Canada — was sold in 2013 to Sobeys, a division of Empire Company, Canada’s second-largest supermarket group.
Though independent from the American company, it continues to use the Safeway name and logo under a licensing arrangement. If you shop at Safeway in Alberta or British Columbia, you are shopping at an Empire Company store, not an Albertsons one.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1. Who owns Safeway in 2026?
Safeway is owned by Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE: ACI), with Cerberus Capital Management as the largest single shareholder at approximately 30%.
Q2. When did Albertsons buy Safeway?
Albertsons acquired Safeway in January 2015 for approximately $9.2 billion in a deal backed by Cerberus Capital Management.
Q3. Who founded Safeway and when?
M.B. Skaggs founded what became Safeway in 1915 in American Falls, Idaho, incorporating it as Safeway, Inc. in 1926 after merging with the original Safeway stores.
Q4. Why did the Kroger-Safeway merger fail?
Kroger tried to acquire Albertsons (Safeway’s parent) for $25 billion in 2022, but the deal was blocked by a federal judge and a state judge in December 2024, with the FTC arguing it would harm competition and raise prices.
Q5. Is Safeway publicly traded?
Not directly. Safeway is a private brand, but its parent company Albertsons Companies, Inc. trades publicly on the NYSE under the ticker ACI.
Q6. Who is the CEO of Albertsons in 2026?
Vivek Sankaran has served as President and CEO of Albertsons Companies since April 2019, previously serving as CEO of PepsiCo Foods North America.
Q7. Is Safeway Canada the same as Safeway US?
No. Safeway Canada was sold to Sobeys (part of Empire Company) in 2013 and operates independently from Safeway US, though it still uses the same name and logo.
Q8. How many Safeway stores are there in 2026?
Safeway operates approximately 912 stores in 2026, primarily across the western United States, making it the largest single banner under the Albertsons Companies portfolio.
Safeway is a brand owned by Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE: ACI), the second-largest supermarket chain in North America, headquartered in Boise, Idaho.
Albertsons acquired Safeway for $9.2 billion in January 2015 — a deal masterminded by Cerberus Capital Management, which remains the single largest shareholder of Albertsons with approximately 30% of the company’s shares. Albertsons is publicly traded, with BlackRock (~7–8.6%), Vanguard (~6–7.65%), Norges Bank (~4.4%), and Fidelity (~4.07%) among its other major institutional investors.
The chain traces its roots to 1915 and an Idaho grocery store founded by M.B. Skaggs, whose vision of value and simplicity still drives the brand more than a century later.
After a failed $25 billion merger with Kroger that was blocked by federal courts in December 2024, Safeway and its parent company are restructuring — closing underperforming stores in 2026 while competing fiercely in one of the most competitive grocery markets in American history.