The Oldest Grocery Store Chains In Illinois Are Also The Oldest In America

You might be shopping at the oldest grocery store chain in America without even realizing it. While Illinois is known for its rich history of iconic mom-and-pop shops, this particular chain has been around since the 1800s—and it's still going strong today.

It should be noted that the oldest chain in America is Ralphs, it was founded in 1873, but they only have locations in the west. Soooo the oldest chain East of the Mississippi River according to Cheapism is,

Kroger - Founded in 1883

This location was first founded in Cincinnati. Over 150 years later, Kroger has grown into the largest supermarket chain in the U.S. by revenue, with nearly 2,800 stores spread across 35 states. Cheapism went on to say,

Bernard “Barney” Kroger — the son of German immigrants who grew up helping in his family’s dry goods store in Cincinnati, took $372 of his savings and in 1883 opened a small grocery store downtown. His business plan was to sell high-quality food at fair prices, and not sell anything you wouldn’t eat yourself.

I have never been to Kroger before myself.

Kroger believed in controlling as much of the process as possible. He started baking his own bread, then roasting his coffee. It was also one of the first to combine groceries with a butcher shop, and later a pharmacy, under one roof. These little moves — now standard in every supermarket — helped shape what Americans expect from a grocery store.

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