Hy-Vee To Close Fulfillment Centers In 4 Midwest States

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Supermarket chain Hy-Vee is closing four centers that fulfill online orders in Missouri, Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska, all but one of them brand new, putting several hundred people out of work.

Christina Gayman, a company spokeswoman, said in a statement that fulfillment centers couldn't provide the "full assortment of products, personalized shoppers and same-day pickup" that customers wanted.

Nearly 600 workers in Kansas City, Missouri, more than 300 in the Twin City suburb of Eagan, Minnesota, and nearly 370 in Urbandale, Iowa, could lose their jobs, although some might be allowed to transfer, according to notices from the company.

Hy-Vee officials did not say how many people will lose their jobs at the Omaha, Nebraska, center, but when it opened last year, media reports put the number of employees at around 500, the Lincoln Journal-Star reported.

The 136,000-square-foot Kansas City center and the 90,000-square foot facility in Eagan also opened last year. The center in Urbandale opened in 2016.

Hy-Vee operates more than 260 stores in eight Midwestern states.