Fountain Valley Fresh & Easy Store to Close

The Fresh & Easy store at the corner of Edinger Avenue and Harbor Blvd. in Fountain Valley is one of 12 underperforming stores slated to be closed temporarily, the company reported Monday.

The company operates two locations in Fountain Valley, one on Harbor Boulevard and another at the corner of Bushard Street and Warner Avenue. Although the company is closing a few stores, it is still planning to open several new locations on the West Coast, including four in Orange County.

The store closures were announced to employees of Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market by CEO Tim Mason on Monday, according to freshandeasybuzz.com, which posted the memo from Mason below.

"Like any retailer, we are always evaluating our store portfolio and we have decided to temporarily close twelve underperforming stores. At this time, there is simply not enough growth in sales and customers to keep these stores open. Many have been open for several years and are trading in areas where the network of Fresh & Easy stores will be able to absorb most of the existing customer base. We have taken significant steps to minimize the impact these temporary closures will have on you, including making sure we are able to offer all impacted employees a position at another nearby store."

Mason calls the store closures "temporary." According to freshandeasybuzz.com, Fresh & Easy plans to "mothball" the 12 stores like it did with the 13 units it closed in November 2010. All 13 of those stores remain vacant.