In 1859, two guys named George started a mail-order tea company in New York City. Believe it or not, this was a revolutionary move that laid the groundwork for the modern-day grocery stores that we frequent today.
Mr. Hartford and Mr. Gilman operated the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company. You know it well. Barrie has had a number of them, each doing business under the drastically shortened name, A&P stores.
What did Hartford and Gilman do that was so different? They were early players in the private label game and their Eight O’Clock Coffee is still being produced today.
The company kept prices low by what they didn’t offer – no credit or delivery services, few employees, and no main street locations but rather rented premises on side streets. The A&P business model also adopted a standardized store layout.
All of this set them apart from competitors until the economic decline of the 1930s. Other grocers were forced to change in order to survive and their innovations gave A&P a run for its money. An early no-frills approach arose as food stores began to operate out of warehouses.
The next move by A&P’s rivals was one stop shopping. Whereas grocery stores had been largely been upgraded versions of old-time dry goods shops, they now offered full butcher, bakery and produce sections. This was the beginning of the supermarket era.
During this time of radical change in food shopping habits, the groceteria style emerged. As the name suggests, customers themselves selected their purchases from display shelves and refrigerated cabinets, cafeteria style, as opposed to having a grocer gather the goods for them.
In October 1921, J.D. Wisdom opened the first groceteria in Barrie within his existing grocery store on Essa Road. So new was this concept that Wisdom’s opening day ad in the Barrie Examiner included instructions for customers who might like to try this new thing.
“This will be the first of its kind in Barrie, and will afford all customers an opportunity to shop at their convenience with plenty of time to look over the stock, which is all priced, marked plainly and put up in handy packages. When the shoppers have made their selection, using baskets which will be supplied on entry for the purpose of collecting their articles, the checking clerk will make up their total, parcel the goods and collect the amount, the customer passing out by a different aisle, avoiding any crowding.”
Despite the best efforts of Wisdom and others, chain stores were slowly putting an end to the mom-and-pop grocery store. Big grocery didn’t push J.D. Wisdom out though. He hung on and it was just ill health that necessitated the sale of his store to Roy Christie.
Christie had arrived in Barrie in the late 1930s after working for the A&P chain for a number of years. He bought McCullough’s grocery store on Dunlop Street West and ran it until 1951 at which time he purchased the Wisdom business and property.
In 1957, the Barrie Examiner declared “not since the days when the late James Bothwell built the block of stores in Allandale in 1890-1, the railway boom days, has this section of town seen such a striking change.”
Roy Christie had the old wood frame Wisdom store torn down and built a state-of-the-art, 43-by-116-foot groceteria, which was considered to be a very large food store at the time. It boasted more refrigeration than had ever been seen in a local grocery store. Arborite and chrome cabinets kept meats, produce and other perishables cool and conveniently displayed.
The grand opening of Roy Christie’s IGA Foodliner store was held on Aug. 29, 1957. The event, complete with prizes and opening day specials, was so popular that Const. Lacey was brought in to direct traffic.
Each week, the Barrie Historical Archive provides BarrieToday readers with a glimpse of the city’s past. This unique column features photos and stories from years gone by and is sure to appeal to the historian in each of us.
