Has anybody ever been inside the unusual Savon Drugs in Boise that had the JA Kitchen deli?
Also, what's the background on these two Albertsons stores (from around 1999) that had its own logo that I found on an old prescription refill website (netrefill.com) that Albertsons briefly had after they completed the American Stores buyout:
Miner's
38th Street Market
luckysaver
Albertsons had a deli inside Boise Savon Drugs
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luckysaver
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kr.abs.swy
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Re: Albertsons had a deli inside Boise Savon Drugs
I lived in Boise when they tried to open a couple Sav-Ons in town.
The Sav-On with the JA's Kitchen was on Bogus Basin Road in a small commercial area at the edge of town. Simplot's home was nearby and there were a few other businesses ... a Jackson's Food Store (I suspect former Circle K), a mom-and-pop burger place, a sporting goods store, etc. At one time I think there was a bank up there, I believe First Interstate, but am not certain. It was near Harrison Boulevard, which had many older, charming houses. It was an older -- but not at all run-down -- section of town.
Albertsons completely gutted an old grocery store to create the Sav-On. I believe they kept two or three of the exterior walls, but removed one to shrink the store. This wasn't one of the pretend remodels they did in the past five years -- the store was completely and thorougly gutted. The building was once a Smith's Food and Drug and was operated by a local chain for a time after Smith's left town.
Albertsons had thought about opening a traditional grocery store in the former Smith's, but instead built what must have been one of the most unique drug stores around. It had video rentals and a full deli, with a larger-than-average grocery selection for a drug store -- including some produce. And of course it had the full line of items traditionally found in a drug store. The furnishings and decor were elaborate, particularly in the deli -- they spent a lot of energy coming up with this store concept. It was truly a store that had been customized very carefully for a unique neighborhood that really didn't necessarily need a full-line grocery store but would seem to be able to support more than just a minimarket. The original Albertsons, at 16th and State streets, wasn't too far away and I'm sure they wanted to complement that store instead of compete with it. The JA's Kitchen took up a significant part of the store. I can't remember any specifics but I think that the prepared food offerings were in line with any traditional Albertsons store in town.
The Sav-On experiment in Boise didn't last long -- this store wasn't even open for two years. Albertsons closed the store and one other Sav-On in the Treasure Valley and implicitly abandoned plans to build others. That was unfortunate -- the Bogus Basin store, at least, was a good idea and I was sad to see it fail. I don't know if they just didn't want to continue to build the Sav-On brand in Boise, if they were afraid this store was stealing business from the original Albertsons store at 16th and State, or if sales at the store were bad. Perhaps it was a combination. This is a tough location because, although there are many nearby homes, there isn't any through traffic, except for people driving to the ski area. You just wouldn't drive by this store on your way home from work.
Anyways, a local outfit called Crane Creek Market took over part of the store. They walled off part of the space and created an eclectic grocery store with the remaining space. The JA's Kitchen area remained largely intact. Crane Creek Market ran into problems and the store was eventually taken over by Ridley's, which is a small chain with stores in Idaho and a few neighboring states. They operated it as a more traditional grocery store. That didn't work either and Ridley's announced this year that they were shuttering the store.
On a very loosely related note, Ridley's recently took over the Blackfoot Albertsons, leaving that town without an Albertsons store for the first time in many decades. Ridley's previous store in Blackfoot was a former Safeway.
The Sav-On with the JA's Kitchen was on Bogus Basin Road in a small commercial area at the edge of town. Simplot's home was nearby and there were a few other businesses ... a Jackson's Food Store (I suspect former Circle K), a mom-and-pop burger place, a sporting goods store, etc. At one time I think there was a bank up there, I believe First Interstate, but am not certain. It was near Harrison Boulevard, which had many older, charming houses. It was an older -- but not at all run-down -- section of town.
Albertsons completely gutted an old grocery store to create the Sav-On. I believe they kept two or three of the exterior walls, but removed one to shrink the store. This wasn't one of the pretend remodels they did in the past five years -- the store was completely and thorougly gutted. The building was once a Smith's Food and Drug and was operated by a local chain for a time after Smith's left town.
Albertsons had thought about opening a traditional grocery store in the former Smith's, but instead built what must have been one of the most unique drug stores around. It had video rentals and a full deli, with a larger-than-average grocery selection for a drug store -- including some produce. And of course it had the full line of items traditionally found in a drug store. The furnishings and decor were elaborate, particularly in the deli -- they spent a lot of energy coming up with this store concept. It was truly a store that had been customized very carefully for a unique neighborhood that really didn't necessarily need a full-line grocery store but would seem to be able to support more than just a minimarket. The original Albertsons, at 16th and State streets, wasn't too far away and I'm sure they wanted to complement that store instead of compete with it. The JA's Kitchen took up a significant part of the store. I can't remember any specifics but I think that the prepared food offerings were in line with any traditional Albertsons store in town.
The Sav-On experiment in Boise didn't last long -- this store wasn't even open for two years. Albertsons closed the store and one other Sav-On in the Treasure Valley and implicitly abandoned plans to build others. That was unfortunate -- the Bogus Basin store, at least, was a good idea and I was sad to see it fail. I don't know if they just didn't want to continue to build the Sav-On brand in Boise, if they were afraid this store was stealing business from the original Albertsons store at 16th and State, or if sales at the store were bad. Perhaps it was a combination. This is a tough location because, although there are many nearby homes, there isn't any through traffic, except for people driving to the ski area. You just wouldn't drive by this store on your way home from work.
Anyways, a local outfit called Crane Creek Market took over part of the store. They walled off part of the space and created an eclectic grocery store with the remaining space. The JA's Kitchen area remained largely intact. Crane Creek Market ran into problems and the store was eventually taken over by Ridley's, which is a small chain with stores in Idaho and a few neighboring states. They operated it as a more traditional grocery store. That didn't work either and Ridley's announced this year that they were shuttering the store.
On a very loosely related note, Ridley's recently took over the Blackfoot Albertsons, leaving that town without an Albertsons store for the first time in many decades. Ridley's previous store in Blackfoot was a former Safeway.
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luckysaver
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Re: Albertsons had a deli inside Boise Savon Drugs
Thanks for the info!
It seemed odd for Albertsons to open a hot deli inside a drug store. No wonder why Albertsons couldn't succeed with a Savon-JA kitchen. Video Rental was more appropriate.
The California section mentions Savon Foods, a short-lived banner of Jewel Companies (basically the California version of Chicago's Jewel supermarkets) in parts of Central and Southern California (Jewel-T and Savon Drugs/Savon Home Centers were their other California operations) that existed prior to American Stores absorbing Jewel.
luckysaver
It seemed odd for Albertsons to open a hot deli inside a drug store. No wonder why Albertsons couldn't succeed with a Savon-JA kitchen. Video Rental was more appropriate.
The California section mentions Savon Foods, a short-lived banner of Jewel Companies (basically the California version of Chicago's Jewel supermarkets) in parts of Central and Southern California (Jewel-T and Savon Drugs/Savon Home Centers were their other California operations) that existed prior to American Stores absorbing Jewel.
luckysaver