People's United teams up with Stop & Shop in Maine

People's United Bank said today that it has signed an exclusive agreement with the Stop & Shop Supermarket Co. to operate some of its branches in the chain's Maine super store locations.

Although it operates 389 stores throughout much of the Northeast, Stop & Shop currently has only one store in Maine, a Kennebunk store that opened last year; at this time, Stop & Shop has not publicly disclosed further details of its expansion plans for Maine, a Stop & Shop spokesman said.

Based in Bridgeport, Conn., People's United Bank said it operates 75 of its 162 Connecticut branches in Stop & Shop stores.

People's United operates under several bank brand names in Maine, including Maine Bank & Trust and Ocean Bank. An Ocean Bank branch is scheduled to open in the Kennebunk Stop & Shop in June, the company said.

People's United said it believes its Connecticut business model of operating bank branches in supermarkets can be "easily replicated in Maine."

Stop & Shop and rival bank company Citizens Financial Group Inc. said recently that they have extended at least through 2017 their partnership that lets Citizens operate Citizens Bank branches in Stop & Shop locations in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and New York, a Citizens spokesman said.

People's United Bank is operated by People's United Financial Inc., a holding company based in Bridgeport, Conn.
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)