Colonial Stores
History
History
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### David Pender Grocery Company

The chain evolved from [Norfolk, Virginia](/wiki/Norfolk%2C_Virginia "Norfolk, Virginia")'s D. P. Pender Grocery Stores, the first of which opened in 1900\. In its early years the company used horse drawn wagons to deliver goods to customers. In 1919 Pender opened a second grocery store in Norfolk, later expanding to more locations in Central and Eastern Virginia. Pender retired on January 1, 1926, making the David Pender Grocery Company a publicly owned corporation which later became a subsidiary of National Food Products Corporation. By Pender's retirement the company owned 244 stores and employed more than 1,500 people. In 1930 the company made an average of $35,000 in sales per store.

### L. W. Rogers Grocery Company

L. W. Rogers opened the first of his grocery stores in Atlanta, Georgia in 1892\. In the next twenty years the company expanded to other locations in Georgia and South Carolina. By 1926 Rogers' company was owned by National Food Products Corporation.

### Colonial Stores

In 1937 National Food Products opened two combined Pender\-Rogers self\-service supermarkets, under the name "Big Star", in [Griffin, Georgia](/wiki/Griffin%2C_Georgia "Griffin, Georgia") and [Greensboro, North Carolina](/wiki/Greensboro%2C_North_Carolina "Greensboro, North Carolina"). Subsequently some smaller stores were also opened under the name "Little Star". In 1940 the chains were officially combined under the name Colonial Stores, Inc. In 1947 the company introduced its rooster logo. In 1950 the company made $179 million in total sales, an average of $488,637 per store.

In 1955 the [Cincinnati](/wiki/Cincinnati "Cincinnati")\-based Albers Super Markets and the [Indianapolis](/wiki/Indianapolis "Indianapolis")\-based Stop and Shop Companies were acquired by National Food Products and put under the Colonial Stores label.

In the 1970s most of the stores were moved to the Big Star label.

In 1978 the New Jersey–based [Grand Union](/wiki/Grand_Union_%28supermarket%29 "Grand Union (supermarket)") purchased the Colonial Stores chain. This move was initially blocked by the [Federal Trade Commission](/wiki/Federal_Trade_Commission "Federal Trade Commission") out of fear Grand Union would be violating anti\-trust laws. This was later dismissed and the purchase was allowed to go ahead.

The Norfolk stores were closed in the 1980s, and many were purchased by the [Food Town](/wiki/Food_Lion "Food Lion") chain. In 1988 the stores owned by Grand Union were resold. The North Carolina and Virginia stores were acquired by [Harris\-Teeter](/wiki/Harris_Teeter "Harris Teeter"), and the Atlanta stores were acquired by [A\&P](/wiki/A%26P "A&P").


Which companies were acquired by National Food Products and put under the Colonial Stores label in 1955?