humble start: Kroger's first store was in Cincinnati in the 1880s, but by the 1920s they had stores like this one in nearby towns...today it is a church
By Kevin Williams
My midsized Rust Belt Ohio town has a variety of grocery stores: Aldi's, Walmart, Meijer, Kroger and a local chain called Marsh. There used to be some IGA and Super Valus in town but they have either shut down or been replaced by Save-A-Lots, so there is no shortage of places to buy food. I'm partial to Kroger and Meijer. Marsh used to be an upscale destination market but is now dumpy with sky high prices.
The "super store" we know today wasn't always so super. I wrote last week about discoveries I can make in my own hometown. One such is a brick building that used to stock bread and milk. A small non-descript brick building on a street in my hometown is now a storefront church today. But what did this small but sturdy building once hold? A Kroger. During the 1920s and 1930s it was a Kroger grocery store. I'm not sure how long that store operated, but Kroger eventually moved to a larger strip mall on the south side of our town. Kroger anchored it on one side and a Hills Department store on the other. The parking lot was always packed as this city's once vibrant middle class feasted on the amenities offered.
This is the Kroger I remember most as a kid...the distinctive white arch architecture was classic Kroger during that period...Interestingly, there are still a few stores today that hold on to that design...
Hills eventually folded and Kroger, sometime in the 1980s or early 90s, built a big store in field near the interstate. It was a free-standing store that was quite modern for its time. But about five years ago that store was razed and replaced with a gleaming new "Kroger Marketplace" on the other side of the parking lot. And the razed store was replaced with...a parking lot for the new Marketplace.
This beast of a store is called a Kroger Marketplace, with a section of "soft goods" like clothing and seasonal items like patio furniture...
And, 30 years from now, I'm sure Kroger will build a 5-football field sized megastore somewhere else.
Our freestanding Meijer store in our hometown was once crammed into a tiny strip mall before it, too, finally broke free sometime in the 1980s. That was a huge event in our town with lines of cars snaking down streets for miles on its opening night.
SIGH, is it just me or is bigger not necessarily better? Don't get me wrong, I like our Kroger Marketplace with their mega-salad bar and organic offerings, but there is also something to be said for just a small neighborhood grocer that you can just run in and out of...
Diann
Unfortunately when Kroger took over our local chain, Dillons, the basically destroyed to smaller local stores. We find prices different in the large towns that are just 30 minutes away and selection slowly being limited and decreased. I am not a fan of the chains. I do have the option of shopping in a local, independent store which also has an unbelievable quantity of authentic Swedish foods. One way he stays in business is that he does a lot of internet sales of his Swedish products.
Kevin
Diann - interesting...Yes, Dillons was a nice, quintessentially Kansas chain but my understanding is that the local flavor has gradually disappeared....Where are you in KS? (I remember a Lindborg or Bourg that billed itself as a Swedish town on the prairie) - Kevin
Karan
Miss having a Kroger in our area. My grandmother wrapped meat in our Kroger Store for many many years back in the 50's and 60's.
Store went out a few years after she passed and a Foodland came in. Now even that is gone and the old store is an antique place.
Now we have to go about 35 miles to find a Kroger .
Kevin
Karan - Where are you located? I thought once a Kroger came to an area they never really left....But I think maybe they've just left a lot of the real small towns where they used to have smaller stores...Kevin
sara marsh
Kroger was across the street from my Dad's Drugstore. It went out probably 55 years ago. They later built in Marion and got caugt up in a time KMart was breaking unions, in Marion IN has been gone since the early 80's. Now the last few years, they put in a Ruler (Kroger's Aldi's wantabe.) Not sure of these dates but somewhere around the time I said. Marion does have a new Meijer's and a really nice newly remodeled Marsh.
Kevin
Lucky you have a nice, remodeled Marsh, Sara, ours is a total dump! RulerFoods is not a store I've had a chance to sample yet, but I've heard that it is how you described, a bare-bones Aldi's wanna-be...
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I live in the western corner of N. Carolina, we have wal mart, Ingels, and a save a lot. I miss Krogers from when I lived in Detroit area. My son lives there and Kroger built one of those mega stores near. It was breath taking. From your meat and veggies to furniture.
Kevin
I do like Ingles, I have been in one of their stores once
Rose
Do you still live in Middle Town?
I live in Price Hill for the time being, and go that moderate sized grocery store in the neighborhood, rather than the Market Place in Delhi. It is a lot easier to navigate. It is a matter of preference though.
Kevin
Yes, Rose, still in M-town!