By 1945, Stop & Shop had nearly 450 stores, most of which operated in the self-service format. In September of the following year, the company formally changed its name to “Stop & Shop, Inc.”. The photos above are typical of the company’s stores of the early postwar period, showing two urban locations – Springfield and Lynn, Massachusetts, and an early shopping center location in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. In the next decade, Stop & Shop would replace many of their smaller urban stores as part of a concentrated push into shopping centers, gaining the advantages of much larger footprints and ample free parking.
I'm really diggin' that first photo.
ReplyDeleteI like it too, Didi...the more signs, the better!
ReplyDeleteThe Fitchburg pic is from the early/mid-50s, judging from the car in front and the general appearance of the store.
ReplyDeleteThe Fitchburg store opened in 1952and is definitely more recent than the other two. Stop & Shop used the western (or maybe circus?)style lettering for a relatively short time.
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