Cala Foods
Encyclopedia
Cala Foods was a supermarket
chain operating in San Francisco, California
. Cala Foods was the sister chain to Bell Markets, but Cala operated stores exclusively within the San Francisco city limits. The last Cala Foods store closed its doors on December 1, 2011.
In 1994, Cala became a division of the Ralphs Grocery Company when Ralphs merged with Yucaipa. In August 2006, Ralphs reached an agreement to sell 11 of 13 Cala and Bell stores back to Harley DeLano, previous manager of the chain. While DeLano retains the right to use the Cala and Bell store names, Kroger
retains ownership of the names themselves. In January 2007, DeLano Retail Partners took control of all but one Cala Foods Store and immediately rebranded the stores to DeLano's IGA
. In late 2010, it was announced that Delano's was struggling financially and that the majority of DeLano's IGA locations would be closing.
The store at the intersection of California and Hyde streets on San Francisco's Nob Hill was operated by Kroger and represented the last Cala Foods Store until its closure on December 1, 2011. It was originally slated to close at the end of 2010, but remained open one additional year.
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
chain operating in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. Cala Foods was the sister chain to Bell Markets, but Cala operated stores exclusively within the San Francisco city limits. The last Cala Foods store closed its doors on December 1, 2011.
History
Cala Foods was established in 1947 by the seven brothers of the Cala family. Cala Foods acquired the QFI supermarket chain in 1973. The company merged with Bell Markets in the mid-1970s. Bell Markets was founded in the 1940s when Dominick Bell and his two brothers opened a supermarket in San Francisco. The Cala Foods chain was purchased by the Yucaipa Companies in 1988.In 1994, Cala became a division of the Ralphs Grocery Company when Ralphs merged with Yucaipa. In August 2006, Ralphs reached an agreement to sell 11 of 13 Cala and Bell stores back to Harley DeLano, previous manager of the chain. While DeLano retains the right to use the Cala and Bell store names, Kroger
Kroger
The Kroger Co. is an American supermarket chain founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It reported US$ 76.7 billion in sales during fiscal year 2009. It is the country's largest grocery store chain and its second-largest grocery retailer by volume and second-place general retailer...
retains ownership of the names themselves. In January 2007, DeLano Retail Partners took control of all but one Cala Foods Store and immediately rebranded the stores to DeLano's IGA
IGA (supermarkets)
IGA is a brand of grocery stores active in more than 30 countries. Contrasting with the chain store business model, IGA operates as a franchise through stores that are owned separately from the brand. Many of these stores operate in small town markets and belong to families that manage them...
. In late 2010, it was announced that Delano's was struggling financially and that the majority of DeLano's IGA locations would be closing.
The store at the intersection of California and Hyde streets on San Francisco's Nob Hill was operated by Kroger and represented the last Cala Foods Store until its closure on December 1, 2011. It was originally slated to close at the end of 2010, but remained open one additional year.