Grand Union

[Caldor1999]

That Grand Union that ciught om fire was in a small town calle dcold springs that bunrted down in 2002 i dont know if it was rebult and i dont know what happend to it

[fa152]

The Cold Spring Grand Union was rebuilt by PSK Supermarkets which operate under the Foodtown banner.

[Caldor1999]

Originally posted by fa152
The Cold Spring Grand Union was rebuilt by PSK Supermarkets which operate under the Foodtown banner.

so its a diffent store now:huh:

[Caldor1999]

hears anouther unkown grand union store this is kida how mine looked

[JimSawhill]

Originally posted by AmesNewington
No, No, Jim. I'm talking about Rocky Hill CT, on Town Line Road. It was a Super Foodmart, then a Grand Union for a few months, and now Super Stop and Shop.

I'm surprised the Newington Foodmart is still open. It needs a remodel badly.

     Oh, Yes...I remember now. Caldor was at the end of the plaza (where WalMart is now). Town Line Plaza is a nice plaza.

     Market Square in Newington looks as if it hasn't been updated since  the 1970s. I guess it is thriving-- barely.

[BillyGr]

Originally posted by storehistoryguy
The closed Grand Union in Bennington, Vt.


http://www.ptvermont.org/DowntownPics/downtown.htm

Make that formerly closed - a Tractor Supply opened recently in the building (only remodeling on the outside was to block off the doors at both ends and put in a set in the middle).

[storehistoryguy]

Originally posted by BillyGr

Originally posted by storehistoryguy
The closed Grand Union in Bennington, Vt.


http://www.ptvermont.org/DowntownPics/downtown.htm

Make that formerly closed - a Tractor Supply opened recently in the building (only remodeling on the outside was to block off the doors at both ends and put in a set in the middle).

Well its nice its getting some use now. :yup:

[Zayre88]

Originally posted by Zayre88
A Grand Union in Ontario, Canada.  The canadian division of the chain was acquired by Steinberg's in 1959.  President Sam Steinberg decided on his own, without telling his board, to buy the stores on a hand shake with Lansing Shields President of Grand Union.

The news about the acquisition

[d_fife]

this grand union is in massapequa new york.

from http://www.siteride.com/srpl/p_snapshot.pl?lm=listing&resbox=1137816526&subNum=10211001079

[d_fife]

here is the grand union in hazlet nj in the bradlees plaza.

from http://www.siteride.com/srpl/p_snapshot.pl?lm=listing&resbox=1137891178&subNum=10215000792

[d_fife]

here is the grand union in manalapan / marlboro nj

from http://www.siteride.com/srpl/p_snapshot.pl?lm=listing&resbox=1137891178&subNum=10215001508

[d_fife]

Originally posted by storehistoryguy
Wheres this Grand Union?


http://www.cvregion.net/sites/Com_Detail.cfm?tblSites_PrimeID=657

this grand union was in berlin vermont and was 53,658 square feet and was once Stuart's. it is still vacant and on the same road as the fast food restuarants and former ames and price chopper is.

[BillyGr]

Here's another (smaller) Group

The 1st picture is the Former Grand Union in Schodack - Built New in 1977, was open until the bankruptcy and wasn't ever remodeled (I don't think).  Plaza with a former Aubachon and a existing Rite Aid to the left and 5 or so small stores to the right, plus a freestanding Burger King off to the side.

2nd and 5th Pictures - On Route 2 between Watervliet and Latham - the 5th photo is what (I Think) was a former GU next to the still existing Kmart.  Closed (probably) in the late 80's was empty until just recently when Gold's Gym moved in (from another former GU at the Latham Circle Mall).  The 2nd shot is the newer store just across the road, built with a plaza of 6 or 7 small stores and a freestanding Pizza Hut).  This is the store that was turned into a church (the doors in the middle of the slant roof are added - that style of GU was fairly popular - we had at least 3 in this area).

3rd & 4th Pictures - This store is on Route 146 in Schenectady - off I-890 exit 9.  This was an old Grand Union - the building doesn't look it (maybe remodeled or added onto at a later time) but the sign frame sure does!).  Don't think I've ever seen one like it at any other GU in the area.  This store closed many years ago (early-mid 90's maybe?) and was (for a short time) a Hot Dot Market (Grand Union's early attempt at a warehouse store like Aldi) - the first (and probably only) one ever opened.

Of course, they tried again (under the new owners) with a store in Ravena - this time called Best Yet Market (their current store brand) - apparently it wasn't the Best Yet, though, as the last time I went by it had become Ravena Shop n Save (Indepently owned but Hannaford supplied).

[amesman]

Actually, BillyGr, the Latham Circle Mall GU later became Woolworth, then Stien Mart, and then finally Golds Gym. Is it vacant again now? Also, GU has entered back into the Adirondacks to their former locations that were up until recently occupies by Tops Supermarkets.

Awesome pics!

[BillyGr]

Oh, they had the Grand Union in the mall at one time - that would have made sense seeing as how it started out as a non enclosed mall.  I remember the Woolworth and later Stein Mart in that spot.

I was thinking of the (later I guess) Grand Union which was in a separate building off to the left of the Caldor wing - by the Kunker Road entrance - the Gold's gym was in there at one point (I think before it moved into the mall proper where you mention).  Maybe they moved to a separate building when the mall was enclosed?

Yeah, I had noticed the article about Tops selling stores back to Grand Union - but even that makes some sense as the other (still existing) Grand Unions that C&S kept tend to be in places where there is little (or no) competition - probably why Saugerties, Glenmont etc. closed as soon as PC (or another store) opened in the area - and these Adirondack stores certainly fit the no competition part (unless you count another GU 30 miles  away ;) ).

[amesman]

yeah, GU might have moved into that seperate building(which is now gone altogether because of the new Lowes).

I heard that Tops didn't pay C&S the leases for the buildings(since they still owned the buildings that had the Tops in them), so they were forced out.

[Anonymous]

Does anyone have pics of the "new" GU stores, formally Tops??

[BillyGr]

Another of those photo combos:

1st Photo is the (still open) Grand Union in Coxsackie - it is a fairly small store (there might be a foot or 2 more to the left, but that's about it - as you can see they even had to put the bottle machines outside!).  There MAY have been an earlier store across the street - the building is now a Family Dollar (posted elsewhere).

2nd Photo is the (Former) Grand Union in Ravena - now operating the area's 2nd known Shop N' Save.  This store was the one that they converted to a Best Yet (warehouse style) market for a short time - mostly like Aldi set up plus they had some food service packaging in one aisle & one freezer case.

3rd, 4th & 5th Photos are the Valatie Grand Unions
- Their first location (way back) was in this building that is now Mario's True Value - of course the building was a lot smaller then - just the peaked roof part.
- They moved up the road about 1/3 mile and build the 2nd building, which is photo #4, the taller part behind the green roof.  This building was expanded once (I think) and in it's last design was of the brown & white arch window design similar to the Carmel store that has been posted here.
- About 8 years ago (so 1997-8) they build their new store, seen in photo #5.  This design is different, and I haven't seen any others like it (I don't think they were building a lot of stores at that time anyway) - this may be the last store they built new with the exception of the Mega Stores - one on Central Ave that lasted 6 months and one across from Marist in Poughkeepsie that never opened.
The reasoning behind the solid block wall in the middle of the front is that the store office is located there - doors are on both ends.  This store is still open (for now) but with Hannaford being built as we type, who knows for how long?

[d_fife]

why are some still called Grand union?

Grand union went bankrupt 3 times and their stores were older and smaller. the nearest one to me was in lincoln nh and a lot of people from there went to the hannaford in plymouth nh (my town) becuase it was not very good. the grand union was small, but built in 1986. it is now P&C markets.

grand unions became shaw's, P&C, hannaford, price chopper, stop and shop and other privatly owned supermarkets. in areas where there were enough supermarkets, it was divded into other stores (like St. Albans). They closed grand unions befoire that and grand union was the major supermarket chain in vermont. I saw one vacant in hudson falls new york last summer.

[store215]

Originally posted by d_fife
why are some still called Grand union?

Grand union went bankrupt 3 times and their stores were older and smaller. the nearest one to me was in lincoln nh and a lot of people from there went to the hannaford in plymouth nh (my town) becuase it was not very good. the grand union was small, but built in 1986. it is now P&C markets.

grand unions became shaw's, P&C, hannaford, price chopper, stop and shop and other privatly owned supermarkets. in areas where there were enough supermarkets, it was divded into other stores (like St. Albans). They closed grand unions befoire that and grand union was the major supermarket chain in vermont. I saw one vacant in hudson falls new york last summer.

C&S Grocery Wholesalers bought up some of the stores and it looks like they really haven't done much with it. There's only around 25-30 stores left (and this chain used to be very, very large, around 200 stores).
I mean, just look at  their "updated" logo, it looks like it was made in Microsoft Word!

[BillyGr]

Originally posted by MBZ321
C&S Grocery Wholesalers bought up some of the stores and it looks like they really haven't done much with it. There's only around 25-30 stores left (and this chain used to be very, very large, around 200 stores).
I mean, just look at  their "updated" logo, it looks like it was made in Microsoft Word!

As MBZ321 says, C&S bought the stores during bankruptcy (they were one of, if not the, largest creditor of Grand Union anyway).  They bought most of the stores (something like 175 of 190 or close to that) for a fairly small sum ($1xx mil dollars), then turned around and re-sold/leased the ones they could to anyone who wanted them (at the price they wanted).  The rest they either closed (some a year or so later) or kept and run.  
They have continued to sell/close stores here & there since, particularly when another store opens in the area (Saugerties and Glenmont NY come to mind - both have newly built Price Choppers nearby, both closed shortly after the Price Chopper opened - the Ravena one just changed to Shop 'n Save after they tried a "discount warehouse" store in there).
The stores they still have open tend to be in markets where competition is low or non-existant, and no - they haven't done much (in most cases nothing) to the stores - that's why most of them still have just the Grand Union signs on them (too much $ to replace the signs for every logo change which has been at least 3 in the 4-5 years they've had them).
Meanwhile, they have also bought a few stores (4 or 5 in the Cape Cod area that I know of when A&P exited that area) - again not much competition (those stores don't even do double coupons) - plus now C&S has taken over many stores in the South (former Bilo's/Brunos from Ahold) under the Southern Family Markets name.
And, the prices have only gone up (you'd expect the opposite when the wholesaler runs them - less layers of overhead) but without competition i guess they don't need to.
This is really nothing new - Grand Union has always been one to go for the areas others don't want - look at the Adirondacks - at one time there were places where you could drive 50,  even 100 miles without seeing any grocery stores except GU or (even worse priced) local stores.

[d_fife]

here is grand union in bridgewater nj in somerset plaza

 from http://www.siteride.com/srpl/p_snapshot.pl?lm=listing&resbox=1141427458&subNum=10215001342

[d_fife]

Originally posted by d_fife
here is grand union in bridgewater nj in somerset plaza

 from http://www.siteride.com/srpl/p_snapshot.pl?lm=listing&resbox=1141427458&subNum=10215001342

more grand union in bridgewater nj and it is now barnes and noble

from http://www.siteride.com/srpl/p_snapshot.pl?lm=listing&resbox=1141427458&subNum=10215001342

[BillyGr]

This is the (former) Grand Union in the Delaware plaza.  As you can see it is now a Hannaford (the only GU in the Albany area taken over by Hannaford - there are others further south in Ulster/Dutchess Counties).

As you can see by the top shots, they left a couple old GU signs for the pharmacy and bottles, but they also put up a new Hannaford pharmacy sign (see arrow pointing to it)!

[BillyGr]

I'll try to keep this short:

1st & 2nd are the Pleasant Valley Location (Rt 44) - now a Key Foods.  The 2nd is a picture of the side of the store - from the design it appears to have (probably) been the front at one time, maybe changed with an addition at some point?

3rd & 4th are the Poughkeepsie location (Main Street) - now split between Rite Aid and Davis Furniture - I don't think this change took place too long ago - maybe during Bankruptcy, or maybe just prior - not sure.  The inset is a cart rack (now at the Latin market - former Rite Aid - across the street, which appear to be from Grand Union.

5th and 6th are on Route 9 in Poughkeepsie/Hyde Park - the 5th is a never opened store (was under construction just before bankruptcy) - the only reason I can identify it is that they built (and opened) an exact copy in Albany (Central Ave - former Caldor site) - unfortunately that was torn down and convereted (the whole site) to a Home Depot.  The 6th was their Hyde Park store, which closed only a year or two ago - it is being converted to the Amish Market after being empty for that time.

7th is the former GU in Rhinebeck - was taken over by Stop & Shop and used until they built a new store on the site of the Jamesway next door (which had sat empty from closing).

8th is the former Glenmont store - it was closed a couple years back after the Price Chopper opened across the street.  They are renovating it now, but I didn't see any signs as to what for.  Last time I had been by (about a month or 2 ago) it was just a blank wall - they removed all windows, doors, decor).

9th is the former GU in Schaghticoke, NY (Rensselaer County) - it closed about a year AFTER the bankruptcy, along with about 4 others (Cambridge was one, I forget the others) - don't know why (no other stores in the area) - still sits empty today.

Last shot is the former Bennington GU, now in it's Tractor Supply Co. decor.  I also spotted the enter/exit signs which are former GU.

[BillyGr]

The first shot is a store on Route 55 in LaGrange (just outside Poughkeepsie).  It is an older store, and was just remodeled (hence the banners).  Foodtown took it over during the bankruptcy (along with several others in the area) but just re-did it now.

2nd is the Highland store on 9W.  It is a newer glass front store and has (I believe) the front center island deli.  Now Hannaford.

3rd is the (Former) Saugerties store.  This one stayed GU after the bankruptcy, but closed when (or shortly after) a Price Chopper opened down the street.  As you can see in the inset, they actually got a new road sign with the apple logo.  
4th is (I believe) another older location in the same plaza.

5th is (again, I believe) an older store in the Kingston Plaza in Kingston.  The arched windows were a popular design, probably late 70's-early 80's with GU.
6th is the (former, but last) GU in the same plaza - it is an unusual design with the corner entry (there is a photo online somewhere of it as a GU being built and/or remodelled into Hannaford).

7th is an older store in the Stuyvesant Plaza in Guilderland (corner of Western & Fuller Roads).  This store closed when the store shown in shot #8 opened.  Later it was a gourmet foods store (Cowan & Lobel) - the original home of the (now famous) Rachael Ray!

Last is a later GU with the glass front - this was purchased by Price Chopper during bankruptcy and later remodelled with the "mini tower" and the blue roofing (was all glass).

[amesman]

Actually, the space at the other end of the Saugerties plaza was occupied by a Jamesway. Cool pics notheless!

[d_fife]

here is the former grand union in wilmington vermont that is now shaw's.

[Caldor1999]

hears a formoemr grand union in Suffern ny i was there last sep and the logo was still on i came back mounths latter to se ethe ogo gone

[Caldor1999]

hears how it looked almost a year ago