The Supermarket
Prior to the turn of the 20th century supermarkets did not exist. Grocers supplied the consumer with groceries, the butcher was the source of meat, a poulterer would be visited for fowl, a fish market for seafood, and so forth. City marketplaces often found all of these and more in the same general location, but they were independent of one another, often taking deliveries on different days. Usually dairy products were delivered by local dairies straight to the consumer’s door. Often vegetable were as well.
Vincent Astor, a member of the wealthy Astor family, created what could be considered an early supermarket in New York in 1915. It failed within two years. Self service stores in which the customer selected his or her own products began to emerge around the country at the same time, with Piggly-Wiggly and A & P growing nationally, but these stores still did not yet sell meat or many other perishable items even into the 1920s. When such stores did emerge it was synchronistic, with many chains today claiming to have been the first.
According to the Smithsonian, that credit belongs to Michael J. Cullen, who founded King Kullen in 1930. Cullen was a former employee of Kroger’s, which chain soon followed suit. This was in the early days of the Great Depression and most grocers were leery of risk as prices rose and jobs vanished. The larger chains soon found that they could offer lower prices to customers from reduced costs. Although meat could now be purchased under the same roof as fresh vegetables, it still usually required the assistance of a meat clerk or butcher.
Prepackaged cuts of meat wrapped in plastic evolved over time. Local dairies discovered that is more cost effective for them to deliver to the store than to individual consumers. As chains grew they began to develop their own brand labels and products, under different names from that of the store itself, to compete with national brands.
Today, the trend is for discounters offering clothing, furniture, electronics, and everything else under the same roof as food. But another trend is emerging as well. Many of these so-called superstores are also offering separate fish markets with fresh fish, a butcher who will take your order, wine stewards, and other services similar to those displaced since King Kullen first opened almost ninety years ago.