A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

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Andrew T.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by Andrew T. »

I must say, it's quite neat seeing a few A&P colonial-style stores still in operation under their original banner: Given how much larger a swath of territory A&P's operations covered in the 1960s, these stores must make up a very small proportion of all the "centennials" originally built! I wonder which store is the most original, overall?

Just for the sake of noting it, here's a picture of an ex-A&P in Princeton, West Virginia; near my hometown. Even though it closed as an A&P in the late '70s, it's remained in operation as a grocery store since then; first as an independent Wyatt's supermarket, then as a Foodland franchise, then as a disount Save-A-Lot store. Although the store exterior (and indeed, the shopping center as a whole) has since been remodeled, the distinctive roof remains intact, and the ancient produce and freezer cases inside belie an earlier past...
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by Groceteria »

Charles Town WV centennial is now a Save-a-Lot.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by MikeRa »

The superfresh locations in Wynnewood, PA and Gladwyne, Pa are still in their A&P Centennial locations.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by Max »

Very sadly, the Centennial A&P in Morristown, NJ will close at the end of 2013. It will be replaced by a Whole Foods in 2014 or 2015. I highly doubt that the building's exterior will look the same once it becomes Whole Foods.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by Hulkamania »

Southampton, NY has a Centennial that operates as A&P's Waldbaums banner.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by tkaye »

Petosa's Family Grocer in Edmonds, Wash., operates out of a Centennial store built in 1968.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by MikeRa »

The Penndel, PA A&P "Centennial" store has, since 2010, a Bottom Dollar Food supermarket in the building.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by MikeRa »

There are a few A&P Centennial stores that now houses Acme Markets. All of these were converted from the A&P and superfresh names when Albertsons acquires 70+ stores from the bankrupt A&P in 2015.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by MikeRa »

MikeRa wrote:The Penndel, PA A&P "Centennial" store has, since 2010, a Bottom Dollar Food supermarket in the building.
This store closed when Aldi acquired Bottom Dollar from Delhaize
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by Groceteria »

This one in Fairmont WV has been expanded into a Shop-n-Save.

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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by Ephrata1966 »

Did A&P have any Centennial-style stores in New Orleans? If so, I'm thinking at least one must survive as either Rouses or Breaux Mart. Even though Rouses bought the tiny, historic A&P in the French Quarter, they rejected at least one A&P that was for sale (this one was a non-Centennial A&P from 1968 in the Garden District) because it was too small, so it was sold to Breaux Mart instead. So I would think any Centennials in the region (if they didn't close before A&P sold the division) would be Breaux Mart today but I could be wrong. A&P really had almost no competition during their time in New Orleans. Albertsons (which somehow does perfectly fine in Cajun country, in particular, Lafayette) entered the city in 2000 but failed miserably, disappearing in 2004, selling some stores to A&P. Really I have no idea why Albertsons had such bad luck here... they seemed like the perfect competitor to A&P, and the few stores they built here had lots of unique features like Starbucks kiosks, Krispy Kreme fresh-baked donuts, and Albertsons Express gas stations/convenience stores. And they had very deluxe liquor departments, which of course in New Orleans are a really lucrative asset for grocers and drugstore chains. So naturally A&P really wasn't in a hurry to replace older, smaller stores in this market towards the end. But there were a handful of Sav-A-Center stores built in the 90's that were comparable to the Albertsons stores of the early 2000s. Would any of these Sav-A-Center stores have been replacements for Centennial-style A&Ps?
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by wnetmacman »

I don't believe there were any in New Orleans proper, but there were centennials in Lafayette, Morgan City and New Iberia for sure, and the New Iberia store still houses a supermarket.

Albertsons didn't work in New Orleans because they couldn't customize enough to satisfy the locals. Plain and simple; if I can go to Dorignac's or Zuppardo's and get the local stuff I want, but can't get it at Albertsons, I'm not going to Albertsons. Also, their prices were significantly higher than the competition. Realistically, the only large companies that have made it in New Orleans were A&P and Winn Dixie. A&P left in 2007, and Winn Dixie is really on shaky ground there. Kroger and Safeway never tried there; the closest that Kroger got was Baton Rouge. Kmart didn't try a supercenter there either. Most chains say Dallas is the toughest market, but New Orleans can make or break you.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by Ephrata1966 »

wnetmacman wrote:Albertsons didn't work in New Orleans because they couldn't customize enough to satisfy the locals. Plain and simple; if I can go to Dorignac's or Zuppardo's and get the local stuff I want, but can't get it at Albertsons, I'm not going to Albertsons. Also, their prices were significantly higher than the competition. Realistically, the only large companies that have made it in New Orleans were A&P and Winn Dixie. A&P left in 2007, and Winn Dixie is really on shaky ground there. Kroger and Safeway never tried there; the closest that Kroger got was Baton Rouge. Kmart didn't try a supercenter there either. Most chains say Dallas is the toughest market, but New Orleans can make or break you.
What kind of local stuff is this you speak of? I didn't realize their prices were high but that explains a lot. But unless Albertsons having high prices is really the only reason, I don't get why A&P was accepted by New Orleanians (A&P operated in the area for at least 75 years, and I'm assuming they never sold local items but please correct me if I'm wrong) but Albertsons wasn't. And maybe the situation in New Orleans was different, but A&P definitely had a reputation for high prices in the Northeastern states for at least 15 years before the chain's final end. There was an Albertsons in Mid-City that I'm surprised was never used by another grocer after it closed. It today is a Goodwill store. There was an Albertsons Express that I think became a Valero in the parking lot.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by wnetmacman »

Ephrata1966 wrote:What kind of local stuff is this you speak of? I didn't realize their prices were high but that explains a lot. But unless Albertsons having high prices is really the only reason, I don't get why A&P was accepted by New Orleanians (A&P operated in the area for at least 75 years, and I'm assuming they never sold local items but please correct me if I'm wrong) but Albertsons wasn't.
Let me give you some New Orleans terms:
Zatarain's - spices, dinners and the like
Hubig's - Pies
Zapp's - potato chips
Blue Plate - Mayonaise

A&P delis also did the plate lunches and other things that the local stores had in their stores. Albertsons sold some very bland fried chicken.
Ephrata1966 wrote:And maybe the situation in New Orleans was different, but A&P definitely had a reputation for high prices in the Northeastern states for at least 15 years before the chain's final end. There was an Albertsons in Mid-City that I'm surprised was never used by another grocer after it closed. It today is a Goodwill store. There was an Albertsons Express that I think became a Valero in the parking lot.
That Albertsons is on Jefferson Davis Parkway. It was just in a really bad location, and nobody could have made it work. It was fairly new when it closed. The gas station in front isn't the original one. The original one was a tiny station with a small kiosk. The current is an On The Run Exxon with a dozen pumps. The Express station never became Valero, similar to the one in Alexandria.
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Re: A&P "Centennial" Stores Still Housing Supermar

Post by Ephrata1966 »

wnetmacman wrote:That Albertsons is on Jefferson Davis Parkway. It was just in a really bad location, and nobody could have made it work. It was fairly new when it closed. The gas station in front isn't the original one. The original one was a tiny station with a small kiosk. The current is an On The Run Exxon with a dozen pumps. The Express station never became Valero, similar to the one in Alexandria.
What was bad about the location? I believe you, but do you mean "bad" in terms of crime or just not a good location for a supermarket? Personally I'm kind of astounded that the former A&P (now Rouses) in the French Quarter has survived as a grocery store for all these decades. A&P had its own chain of liquor stores in the Northeastern states, but I guess never tried any in Louisiana. It's a shame because that French Quarter spot would be absolutely perfect for a liquor store. Imagine just how mobbed it would get during Mardi Gras, St Patrick's Day, etc. Sure, the Rouses does sell booze, but the selection is skimpy, and they keep all the spirits on display behind the counter to prevent shoplifting. Buying spirits there feels like shopping at one of the State Stores in Pennsylvania in the old days. Or might as well be the Virginia ABC stores, or even the LCBO stores in Canada.
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