Shoppers Food Warehouse

Shoppers Food & Pharmacy

Type	Subsidiary
Industry	Retail
Founded	1949; 68 years ago (1949)
Headquarters	Bowie, Maryland, U.S.
Number of locations	52
Products	Bakery, dairy, deli, frozen foods, grocery, meat, pharmacy, produce, seafood, snacks, liquor
Parent	SuperValu
Website	http://www.shoppersfood.com/

Shoppers Food & Pharmacy, also known as Shoppers Food Warehouse, is a chain of 52 supermarkets located in the Baltimore, Northern Virginia, and Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Shoppers has fresh produce, Swift Angus beef, Smithfield natural pork, all-natural chicken, Dietz & Watson delis, fresh seafood, steamed shrimp, as well as hot foods, full-service pharmacies.

Shoppers is thought to have innovated several now-common supermarket features, such as warehouse shelving (no longer utilized in new stores), open-bin bulk foods (also no longer found in the chain), large salad bars with hot prepared foods and specialized fans to keep produce fresh, and "warehouse-sized" packaged products. Shoppers also was one of the first chains to sell all of its produce by the pound, rather than by the item, which is now common. This prevented the "picked-over" selection of produce commonly found in conventional supermarkets several days after a produce delivery.

Shoppers Food & Pharmacy had its roots in a store opened in 1929 by founders Irving Herman and his younger brother, Kenneth Herman, at Vermont and V St, NW, Washington, D.C. The earliest Jumbo Food Store was in operation as early as May 1952 at 3439 Benning Rd N.E., Washington, D.C., and was the former River Terrace Super Market. The Herman brothers were joined by their brother-in-law, Sam Levin, and a location in Seat Pleasant, Maryland at 401 Eastern Ave opened shortly after. On October 1, 1958, the store at 2400 University Blvd, E., in the Adelphi Shopping Center opened in Adelphi, Maryland, and, even after being gutted by a fire in 1994, remained a Shoppers Food Warehouse until its closure in spring 2011.

By January 1960, there were four Jumbo Food Store locations: 1551 Alabama Ave, S.E. at Stanton Rd (Shopping Center); 3439 Benning Rd N.E. (River Terrace); 401 Eastern Ave., Seat Pleasant, Md.; and 2400 University Blvd. E. (Adelphi Shopping Center).

By March 1967, five additional locations were in operation: 1919 Michigan Ave, (at Eastern); 6016 Old Silver Hill Rd. at Marlboro Pike, District Heights, Maryland; 3041 Naylor Rd., S.E. near Sears and Suitland Pkwy.; 12145 Rockville Pike (Pike Shipping Center), Rockville, Maryland; and 6300 New Hampshire Ave., Takoma Park, Maryland. By 1969, the Alabama Ave store closed and eight stores remained. By 1978, the River Terrace, Michigan Ave., District Heights, and Naylor Rd., S.E. stores were closed.