The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company
A&P logo, c. 2012
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A&P's final headquarters, in Montvale, New Jersey
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| A&P | |
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Formerly called
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Gilman & Company (1859–1869) |
| Industry | Grocery |
| Fate | Chapter 11 bankruptcy |
| Founded | 1859 in New York City, New York, United States |
| Founder | George Gilman |
| Defunct | November 30, 2015 |
| Headquarters | Montvale, New Jersey, US |
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Number of locations
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15,709 at peak (1930) 296 at liquidation (2015) |
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Areas served
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United States and Canada |
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Number of employees
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28,500 (2015) |
| Website | aptea |
15,709 at peak (1930)
The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, better known as A&P, was an American chain of grocery stores that ceased supermarket operations in November 2015, after 156 years in business. From 1915 through 1975, A&P was the largest food/grocery retailer in the United States (until 1965, the largest U.S. retailer of any kind). A&P was considered an American icon that according to The Wall Street Journal "was as well known as McDonald's or Google is today" and that A&P was "Walmart before Walmart." Known for innovation, A&P and the supermarkets that followed its lead significantly improved nutritional habits by making available a vast assortment of food products at much lower costs. Until 1982, A&P also was a large food manufacturer. In his 1952 book, American Capitalism, John Kenneth Galbraith cited A&P's manufacturing strategy as a classic example of countervailing power that was a welcome alternative to state price controls.
Founded in 1859 by George Gilman as "Gilman & Company", within a few years it opened a small chain of retail, tea, and coffee stores in New York City and operated a national mail order business. The firm grew to 70 stores by 1878 when Gilman passed management to George Huntington Hartford, who turned A&P into the country's first grocery chain. In 1900, it operated almost 200 stores. After Hartford acquired ownership, A&P grew dramatically by introducing the economy store concept in 1912, growing to 1,600 stores in 1915. After World War I, it added stores that offered meat and produce, while expanding manufacturing. In 1930, A&P, now the world's largest retailer, reached $2.9 billion in sales with 16,000 stores. In 1936, it adopted the self-serve supermarket concept and opened 4,000 larger stores (while phasing out many of its smaller units) by 1950.
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