Safeway Inc.

5918 Stoneridge Mall Rd.

Year founded: 1926

Industry: Retail

Post 200 Category: Top Companies Headquartered Outside Region

Revenue: n/a

Net Income/Loss: n/a

Earnings per share: n/a

Dividend: n/a

Stockholder equity: n/a

Auditor: Deloitte & Touche LLP

Stock: SWY

Assets: n/a

Market capitalization: $9.66 Billion

52-week high: 25.64 6/30/2004

52-week low: 17.26 10/26/2004

Chairman and CEO: Steven A. Burd

EVP: Larree M. Renda

Employees: 191000

Local employees: 9000

Description: Safeway is one of the nation's largest food and drug retailers, operating more than 1,800 grocery stores in North America, including 178 stores in the District, Maryland and Virginia. Safeway's stores include Vons on the West Coast, Dominick's in Chicago, Tom Thumb and Randall's in Texas, Genuardi's in Philadelphia and Carrs in Alaska. The company sells 2,500 food and other products under its own brand names.

Developments: It was not a pretty year for Safeway in 2004. The company struggled to mend relations with thousands of its employees in California after they ended a bitter, five-month strike in February, which cost the company an estimated $7 million a day, according to some analysts. One of the company's largest investors, the California Public Employees' Retirement System, called for stripping the company's chairman and chief executive of his chairmanship. And the company still struggles to fend off retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which has been luring grocery customers to its aisles with low-price, one-stop offerings. By the end of last year, Safeway announced new contract agreements with the labor union representing workers in California in a deal that executives say will help the company lower its health care and wage costs to better compete with Wal-Mart and other discount retailers, such as Costco Wholesale Corp. Safeway said it plans to use its cost savings to remain competitive in pricing and to improve its stores. The company also completed internal reorganizational moves to centralize the company's marketing efforts. This year, Safeway began a new advertising campaign and an effort to remodel many of its Washington area stores with hardwood floors, subdued lighting and spruced-up produce, deli, bakery and floral departments.