Grocers like Lidl and Aldi continued their massive expansion across the US in spite of the COVID pandemic⁠—but it was Southern stalwart Winn-Dixie that truly 'redefined' itself in the midst of the crisis, according to a new analysis from Placer.ai.

The grocer's "focus on value ,being a one-stop shop, and proximity to audiences drove significant growth during COVID," Placer.ai's Ethan Chernofsky writes in a new report. And foot traffic states back up that claim: visits to the brand's locations are up 18.4% over July 2019 numbers, suggesting the chain "could be oriented towards a much brighter trajectory as a result of its pandemic performance."

Meanwhile, brands like Trader Joe's, H-E-B, Ralph's and Harris Teeter showed significant recoveries over recent months, with all four brands showing improvements in July over July 2019 numbers. Visits to H-E-B were up 4.5% over July 2019 figures, while Trader Joe's saw visits up 11% in the same period.