Just days until major grocery chain and Walmart rival shuts store doors for good after abrupt closure stunned shoppers

A POPULAR discount chain has prepared to close one of its stores in the coming weeks.

Save-A-Lot officials have announced that the store in Waterville, Maine, 20 miles north of Augusta, will close permanently on June 1st.

Zak Sclar, the store’s CEO, told the Morning Sentinel that the store has been “financially unstable” for years.

Sclar explained that the decision to close the supermarket was not “taken lightly”.

He said: “There’s just so much we could do. It was a struggle.”

The deal opened to the public in 2012 but faced an uncertain Future as rising rents were expected in June.

But the supermarket was popular with older shoppers and residents who live nearby and don’t have cars.

Sclar has confirmed new assignments will be offered to the 12 employees who have worked in the store.

Meanwhile, a Save A Lot store in East St. Louis, Illinois, closed on April 20 after eight years of operation.

Its owner Rob Bonner told the Belleville News-Democrat it was time for him to retire.

He said: “Someone else will come and open another grocery store. I am retiring.

“I’m done. I’m from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. I’m retiring and going home.”

Bonner revealed that he opened the store in 2015 because he didn’t like how other stores “charged” customers.

He said: “I love this community. I’ve been there for over 30 years. I fell in love with this community and there was such a need.

“When I came to church, there were so few services there.”

Save A Lot was founded in 1977 with more than 800 stores across the country.

Competitors include popular chains like Kroger, Aldi, and Walmart.

The US Sun reported how a Walmart convenience store in Overland Park, Kansas, will close on June 2 after two decades of business.

A spokesman told The US Sun that the store will be closed due to underperformance.

Neighborhood Market shops are more focused on groceries and pharmacy items.

They’re smaller than Walmart Supercenters, which sell a wide range of products from electronics to clothing and groceries.

It comes after Walmart closed at least 10 stores in April alone.

Popular retailer Target is also closing four stores on May 13.

Bosse is closing two locations in Washington, DC, one in Minneapolis and one in Philadelphia.