Target once again tops Twin Cities grocery rankings

• Target's standing increased slightly compared to 2020, while Walmart and Cub Foods saw their shares decline by a sliver.

Plus: Predictions that Hy-Vee would gobble up more of the market share have yet to materialize.

• The Des Moines-based brand didn't add any new stores in 2021 and remained stable at just under 3%.

Why it matters: The grocery market is extremely competitive — and given typically slim margins for stores, every customer counts.

Between the lines: Cub Foods has long been a big player in the local grocery wars. Past Chain Store Guide data published in the Star Tribune shows that Cub reigned supreme with 40% of the market in the 1990s, and was in the top spot as recently as 2018.

• And Cub has kept an advantage when it comes to stores, with 74 in the area.
• But the data shows big-box chains like Target (51) and Walmart (25) are still doing better on volume of products sold.

Driving the sales: Grocery sales spiked during the height of the pandemic, as families ate more meals at home.

• Interest in contactless shopping options such as online ordering and curbside pick-up, both of which are offered by the larger chains, also soared.

Of note: A spokesperson for Cub, whose parent company Supervalu was purchased by United Natural Foods in 2018, declined to comment on its standing.

• A handful of local Cub storefronts are owned by other operators, the data shows.

What to watch: Plans to open several Amazon Fresh stores across the Twin Cities will further shake up the local grocery scene.

• Meanwhile, Hy-Vee, which is a relative newcomer to the market, canned plans this month to open five new suburban stores, per The Pioneer Press.

More grocery coverage: While Target and Walmart have the biggest market share, Lunds, Cub and Aldi are the favorites among Axios Twin Cities readers, per a survey last year.

• But no one store has your hearts: Nine in 10 of you shop at two or more stores a month.