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Winn-Dixie, in order to focus on profitability, announced plans to shrink the store base by 35 percent and reduce the workforce by 28 percent.

In an effort to salvage its future, Winn-Dixie announced plans Tuesday to close 326 stores and eliminate 22,000 jobs.

The goal is to focus on its most successful markets, as the bankrupt supermarket chain tries to emerge as a leaner operation better equipped to handle the competition from Wal-Mart Stores and Publix Super Markets.

South Florida will be a key part of that future, which is why there were only a handful of stores targeted for closing: four in Broward County, five in Palm Beach County and none in Miami-Dade.

Under the plan proposed Tuesday, Winn-Dixie will reduce its workforce by 28 percent and its store base by 35 percent, leaving 587 stores in Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi and the Bahamas. The supermarket chain is pulling entirely out of North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, as well as key markets like Atlanta and Savannah, Ga., and Jackson, Miss.

Winn-Dixie hopes to find buyers during the next several weeks for the store leases. Otherwise, the stores will be closed and liquidated, likely by the end of the summer. The company will try to find positions for affected employees, otherwise they will receive severance packages. The closings are expected to impact about 630 employees in Broward and Palm Beach counties.

''We're shrinking this company to grow it in the future,'' said Peter Lynch, president and chief executive officer, who spoke to reporters on a conference call. ``These are tough decisions, but I believe this footprint is the right size for the company going forward.''

After the closings, Winn-Dixie said its revenues will fall to $7.5 billion, compared to $10 billion today. But the company declined to provide any additional numbers about how much the store closings will cost, how much the company expects to save or the profitability level of the new stores going forward.

Winn-Dixie also said Tuesday that it will close three of its 10 distribution centers and try to sell its six dairies and two manufacturing plants. Lynch also told reporters he plans this summer to announce a major reorganization at the Jacksonville headquarters that will result in the layoff of about 500 employees.

While analysts agree that Lynch is making the right moves, many remain skeptical about the future prospects for the chain that was born in Lemon City.

''The odds are not with them,'' said Andrew Wolf, a retail analyst who covers the supermarket industry for BB&T in Richmond, Va. ``They're in a very tough competitive spot against Wal-Mart and Publix, arguably two of the most powerful supermarket chains in the country. Winn-Dixie's stores don't do the necessary volume to be highly profitable.''

''They're in bad shape,'' said Mariza Costa, a food and drug analyst with Bernard Sands in New York. ``There are rumors out there of other companies looking to buy their stores and that just might happen.''

The closings announced Tuesday are just the latest wave of what have been several cost-cutting moves in recent years aimed at getting rid of unprofitable stores. When Winn-Dixie filed for bankruptcy protection on Feb. 21, it asked for court approval to terminate the leases of 150 stores that had already been closed, as well as two warehouses.

Even if Winn-Dixie can manage to emerge from bankruptcy, it's not uncommon in the supermarket industry for chains to file bankruptcy multiple times before ultimately being forced to completely liquidate.

A good indication of Winn-Dixie's future may be determined by what happens in South Florida, where the company has recently finished investing millions to remodel its stores and introduce a ''neighborhood market'' strategy featuring improved merchandise selection and beefed up customer service.

The next step is a marketing campaign to get consumers back in the stores to see what has changed.

''We have made some good strides and we see tremendous opportunities for those markets,'' Lynch said Tuesday about the results of the South Florida initiatives. ``I feel very good about the base and the opportunity we have for the future there.''

Local industry experts weren't surprised to see a few store closings in South Florida. They say that if Winn-Dixie can't turn things around here, there is no hope for the supermarket chain.

''They have a great base of below-market store leases with one of the best opportunities to maximize sales,'' said Stephen Bittel, chairman of Terranova, a Miami Beach real estate firm that manages and owns shopping centers around the state. ``The last stand, if there is to be one, will be had in South Florida.''

I had no idea it was a real store. I thought they made it up for that dog story. Huh. Shows what a Yank I am, eh?

I had no idea it was a real store. I thought they made it up for that dog story. Huh. Shows what a Yank I am, eh?

When someone leaves.. another comes to take its place. Murphy's law says so.