Delchamps
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
grocery store
Grocery store
A grocery store is a store that retails food. A grocer, the owner of a grocery store, stocks different kinds of foods from assorted places and cultures, and sells these "groceries" to customers. Large grocery stores that stock products other than food, such as clothing or household items, are...
s, based in Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
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The chain was founded by Alfred Frederick Delchamps in November 1921 at the corner of Lawrence and Canal streets in Mobile, which he operated along with his brother, Oliver. The chain was a fixture in the central Gulf Coast areas, with more than a hundred stores at its 1990s peak in Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
and Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
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In 1927, Delchamps opened its first warehouse at the intersection of Commerce and St. Anthony Streets in order for the company to carry higher quality merchandise and a larger variety of foods. The warehouse would be moved to a larger facility at the foot of Dauphin Street four years later, and a larger warehouse, more modern warehouse would built at the intersection of Water and Adams Streets. Additional warehouse space was utilized in the Happy Hills community north of Downtown Mobile and at the Alabama State Docks.
Delchamps opened its first supermarket at the intersection of St. Louis Street and Washington Avenue in 1928. This was the largest grocery store in Mobile and, moreover, the largest food store in Alabama. Three years later, in 1931, Delchamps would open its first out of state location in Pensacola, FL. A rival grocery chain, the Coleman Grocery Company, was acquired in 1937, making Delchamps the largest grocery chain in the city. In 1941, Delchamps opened its first store in Montgomery, AL. In order to make future expansions possible, Delchamps incorporated in 1946. This incorporation allowed employees to own stock in the company as well.
In 1985, Delchamps unveiled its 42057 square feet (3,907.2 m²) Super Store supermarket concept. This format featured a bakery, delicatessen and salad bar in addition to conventional grocery store amenities. The Delchamps Super Stores operated on a 24 hour basis. The first Delchamps Super Store opened at the North Gate Shopping Center, now known as Dauphin Square, on Dauphin Street in west Mobile. Over the next decade, Delchamps Super Store supermarkets would be constructed, replacing outmoded Delchamps grocery stores in markets along the Gulf Coast.
In 1997, the chain was purchased by Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
-based Jitney Jungle
Jitney Jungle
Jitney Jungle was a chain of supermarkets that began in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1919.-Origins:Originally, brothers Judson McCarty Holman and William Henry Holman and their cousin William Bonner McCarty founded a charge-and-carry grocery store in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1912...
, itself a well-known brand name in its home state and neighboring Louisiana. A total of 114 Delchamps stores were purchased, with a handful being closed and another small group being re-branded as Jitney Jungle. However, the purchase and Jitney's takeover by an investment firm proved to be ill-advised, and by 1999 the combined chains went into bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
. The next year some stores were sold off to competitor Winn-Dixie
Winn-Dixie
Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. is an American supermarket chain based in Jacksonville, Florida. Winn-Dixie has ranked number 24 in the 2010 "Top 75 North American Food Retailers" based on 2009 fiscal year estimated sales of $7.3 billion by Supermarket News. and was ranked the 43rd largest retailer in the...
; most of those locations have since closed in the wake of that chain's own troubles and retrenchment toward its northern Florida base. Nineteen other locations were sold to Bruno's Supermarkets
Bruno's Supermarkets
Bruno's Supermarkets, LLC is an American chain of grocery stores founded in 1932 by Joe Bruno in Birmingham, Alabama. It previously operated over 230 stores under the names Bruno’s, Food World, Foodmax, Food Fair, Fresh Value, Vincent's Markets, Piggly Wiggly, Consumer Foods, and American Fare in...
and converted to their brands. At least one location in Hoover, Alabama
Hoover, Alabama
Hoover is a city in Jefferson and Shelby Counties in north central Alabama, in the United States. The largest suburb of Birmingham, the population of the city was 62,742 as of the 2000 census and 81,619 in the 2010 census. Hoover is part of the Birmingham-Hoover, AL MSA and is also included in the...
was later converted to Publix Super Markets
Publix
Publix Super Markets, Inc. is an American supermarket chain based in Lakeland, Florida.Founded in 1930 by George W. Jenkins, it is an employee-owned, privately held corporation. Publix is currently ranked No. 86 on Fortune magazine's list of 100 Best Companies to Work For 2010 and was ranked No...
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