Andalusia Fred’s closing in February

Published 2:30 am Saturday, January 28, 2017

Andalusia’s Fred’s is closing.

There are signs plastered all over the store and yard signs leading up to the parking lot at the store located in Sanford Station.

Employees inside said the store is set to close Feb. 28.

Media requests were directed to Fred’s corporate, who hasn’t returned calls.

On Friday, the store was packed with people taking advantage of the everything must go sales ranging from 5 percent to 50 percent off.

Fred’s announced in December that its third quarter sales had a net loss of $38.4 million. It also said it would close 40 stores in the first half of 2017.

Michael Bloom, Chief Executive Officer, said in a press release, “We continue to address and improve several key areas of our business, including a heightened focus on positioning Fred’s as a leading healthcare-focused company. These ongoing initiatives are designed to strengthen all aspects of our operations as we seek to create a more dynamic platform to grow our business while maximizing returns on invested capital and, in turn, shareholder value. We look forward to providing additional updates in the months and quarters ahead.”