Sentry Foods is a 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...

 chain operating in Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

.

Sentry Foods stores got their start in the Milwaukee area in the 1960s, being operated and supplied by the Godfrey family. In the mid-1980s, Fleming Companies, Inc., at the time a major wholesaler, bought the majority of the stores and took over supplying them. Being predominantly a wholesaler, Fleming was never a major force in the retail market, and as a result of missteps and poor financial choices, Fleming went bankrupt in 2000 and was forced to sell off the stores. Each store is now independently owned and operated. Terry Daniels owns and operates six: Janesville

Janesville, Wisconsin

Janesville is a city in southern Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat of Rock County and the principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 62,998.-History:...

 East, Janesville West, Whitewater

Whitewater, Wisconsin

Whitewater is a city in Jefferson and Walworth Counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located near the southern portion of the Kettle Moraine State Forest, Whitewater is the home of the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater.-Geography:...

, Elkhorn

Elkhorn, Wisconsin

Elkhorn is a city in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. It is southwest of Milwaukee and northwest of Chicago. The population was 7,305 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Walworth County...

, Walworth

Walworth, Wisconsin

Walworth is a village in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,304 at the 2000 census. The village is located within the Town of Walworth.-Geography:Walworth is located at ....

 and recently, Belleville, Wisconsin

Belleville, Wisconsin

Belleville is a village in Dane and Green Counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 1,908 at the 2000 census.The Dane County portion of Belleville is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the Green County portion is part of the Monroe Micropolitan Statistical...

. They are all supplied by Supervalu

Supervalu (United States)

SuperValu Inc. is a United States grocery retailer and distributor. The corporation, headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, has been in business for over a century. It is the third-largest food retailing company in the United States , and ranks #51 on the Fortune 100 list.On June 2, 2006,...

of Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Brothers Tim and Kevin Metcalfe own and operate two: Madison

Madison, Wisconsin

Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....

 and Wauwatosa

Wauwatosa, Wisconsin

Wauwatosa is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States, and was incorporated on May 27, 1897. As of the 2006 census estimate, the city's population was 44,798. Wauwatosa is located immediately west of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and is a part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area...

. These stores are branded under the "Metcalfe's Sentry Foods" name. Metcalfe's also operated stores in Waunakee

Waunakee, Wisconsin

Waunakee is a village in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States . The population was 12,097 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area. Waunakee bills itself as "The Only Waunakee in the World." The village was named as #78 in CNN Money's "Top 100 Best Places to...

 and Middleton

Middleton, Wisconsin

Middleton is a city in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States. It is a western suburb of the state capital, Madison but it was actually founded before Madison. It got its name from Middletown, Connecticut; the "w" being dropped was due to a paper work error made by long time historian Edward Kromrey...

 which have since closed.

Sentry Foods had its own bakery division, Crestwood, which was located on Highway 100 and Greenfield in West Allis, Wisconsin

West Allis, Wisconsin

West Allis is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. It is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The population was 61,254 at the 2000 census. Its name derives from Edward P. Allis, who started the Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company in the 19th century. The site of the town was...

. After the purchase of the Sentry distribution line from Supervalu, the company saw the bakery as obsolete and closed the division, selling its bakery recipes to Milwaukee-based Grebe's Bakery. The former bakery building was sold and then demolished to make way for an Aldi

ALDI

ALDI Einkauf GmbH & Co. oHG, doing business as ', short for "Albrecht Discount", is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany...

 store and a Culver's

Culver's

Culver’s is a privately owned and operated fast casual restaurant chain that operates primarily in the Midwestern United States. The first Culver’s opened in 1984 in Sauk City, Wisconsin...

 restaurant.

Sentry benefited from the exit of Kohl's Food Stores and Jewel-Osco from the Milwaukee Market. A few of the former Jewel stores were rebranded Sentry and continued distribution with SuperValu. When A&P exited the market along with the Kohl's Food Stores, the smaller stores were purchased by
independent owners, remodeled and reopened as Sentry.

The stores were formally marketed under the Supersaver, Rainbow Foods and Sun Foods banners. SuperSaver stores were generally the largest Sentry stores, while Rainbow stores were stripped-down, low-cost affairs. A number of stores have closed because of competition with Pick 'n Save (Roundy's

Roundy's

Roundy's Supermarkets is a Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based supermarket chain with 154 stores in Minnesota and Wisconsin, and 4 stores in Illinois...

), Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...

 and ALDI

ALDI

ALDI Einkauf GmbH & Co. oHG, doing business as ', short for "Albrecht Discount", is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany...

. When Jewel Osco, owned by Supervalu, closed its stores in Wisconsin in May 2007, Albrecht's Sentry Foods took over two stores in Racine and Kenosha Counties. About six months after its grand opening Albrecht's Sentry Foods closed its store in Kenosha and its Racine store is still in debut.