As OKCTalk was first to report in 2014, the deep discounter with a rabid following is planning 3 to 4 area locations: Moore, NW 39th & Portland, Reno and Midwest Boulevard in Midwest City and Memorial and Penn.
WinCo established its first stores outside the western U.S. when they expanded to the Dallas Fort Worth area in 2014. Now with 7 stores in that area and an 8th ready to open in Denton, the company is also well underway on a massive 800,000 square foot distribution facility in Denton that is scheduled to open in early 2017.
The first Oklahoma City area stores will open around the same time as the new Denton distribution center. WinCo has been using third parties to supply its DFW stores but part of their discount and quality model is to establish their own gigantic centers for all their locations.
WinCo is also looking at sites in Tulsa.
Now with over 100 stores, WinCo reduces operation expenses by purchasing directly from manufacturers and farmers; accepting cash and debit cards, but not credit cards; having basic, no-frills stores; and not providing bagging service.
They plan to got head-to-head with Walmart with comparable or lower pricing while using an employee-owned model that loyal customers claim provides superior customer service and excellent quality.
The first two building permits are for 85,000 square foot stores at a cost of $10 million each. Selling just food and related items, this is more than double the size of a typical grocery store.
The Midwest City location on he site of a shuttered Target should be starting soon as well. The Penn and Memorial location has encountered site problems due to terrain and if it goes forward, would likely open after the first three.
WinCo stores are open 24 hours.
OKCTalk shops at WinCo and provides a detailed review
