Waldbaum's
Encyclopedia
Waldbaum's is a supermarket
chain with stores on Long Island
, in the New York City
boroughs of Brooklyn
, Queens
, and Staten Island
, and one store in Connecticut
. It began in 1904 as a shop run by Sam and Wolf Waldbaum in Brooklyn. Their nephew, Izzy, emigrated to America and joined the business. Izzy worked for his uncles until they retired, taking over one grocery. Izzy Waldbaum married Julia Leffel; they had three children. When Izzy died at age 55, his son Ira took over the existing 6 stores. Ira ran Waldbaum's until the 1986 sale. His mother Julia became the corporate spokesperson, touring stores, attending grand openings, and appearing on most Waldbaum's-branded products. Julia also published Waldbaum's recipe books, and appeared in print ads into her senior years.
In the late 1970s, Waldbaum's purchased Foodmart, Inc., a New England supermarket chain, enabling it to expand into southern New England. These stores were named Waldbaum's Foodmart; the company peaked at over 160 stores. It was acquired by The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company
(A&P) in 1986. A&P mismanaged Waldbaum's, investing little in these stores, resulting in the closing or sale of many Foodmart stores in the New England division. A&P then converted the remaining Waldbaum's Foodmart store into the Super Foodmart banner, and, later, A&P Super Foodmart (A&P's other New England division). The diminished, 63-store Waldbaum's exists only in Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, and on Long Island. Many Waldbaum's are former A&P stores; A&P later bought Waldbaum's.
Waldbaum's operates full-service, traditional supermarkets, with differing of footprints and store models. All Waldbaum's feature fresh meats and produce. Sixty-two stores have a bakery, with 36 offering pharmacy service. As with other A&P-branded stores, Waldbaum's offers in-house products under the America's Choice, Master Choice, Savings Plus, Simply Kids, MORE, Hartford Reserve, and Health Pride names.
Some believe that Waldbaum's is a subsidiary of the retail
giant Walmart due to the name, but there is no connection.
On December 13, 2005, Waldbaum's began offering online shopping.
On August 13, 2010, A&P (NYSE: GAPTQ), announced that it would close 25 stores as the parent of Waldbaum's began the implementation and execution phase of its comprehensive turnaround; these stores closed in October. Two of these stores were Waldbaum's; one each in Centereach and Levittown, both on Long Island.
In February 2011, A&P announced 32 further store closings, including three Long Island Waldbaum's: Farmingdale, Smithtown, and Valley Stream. These closed April 15, 2011.
Waldbaum's was referenced in the television shows The King of Queens
, Everybody Loves Raymond
, and Happily Divorced
.
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
chain with stores on Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, in the New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
boroughs of Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
, and Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, and one store in Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. It began in 1904 as a shop run by Sam and Wolf Waldbaum in Brooklyn. Their nephew, Izzy, emigrated to America and joined the business. Izzy worked for his uncles until they retired, taking over one grocery. Izzy Waldbaum married Julia Leffel; they had three children. When Izzy died at age 55, his son Ira took over the existing 6 stores. Ira ran Waldbaum's until the 1986 sale. His mother Julia became the corporate spokesperson, touring stores, attending grand openings, and appearing on most Waldbaum's-branded products. Julia also published Waldbaum's recipe books, and appeared in print ads into her senior years.
In the late 1970s, Waldbaum's purchased Foodmart, Inc., a New England supermarket chain, enabling it to expand into southern New England. These stores were named Waldbaum's Foodmart; the company peaked at over 160 stores. It was acquired by The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company
The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company
The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, better known as A&P, is a supermarket and liquor store chain in the United States. Its supermarkets, which are under six different banners, are found in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. A&P's liquor stores, known as...
(A&P) in 1986. A&P mismanaged Waldbaum's, investing little in these stores, resulting in the closing or sale of many Foodmart stores in the New England division. A&P then converted the remaining Waldbaum's Foodmart store into the Super Foodmart banner, and, later, A&P Super Foodmart (A&P's other New England division). The diminished, 63-store Waldbaum's exists only in Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, and on Long Island. Many Waldbaum's are former A&P stores; A&P later bought Waldbaum's.
Waldbaum's operates full-service, traditional supermarkets, with differing of footprints and store models. All Waldbaum's feature fresh meats and produce. Sixty-two stores have a bakery, with 36 offering pharmacy service. As with other A&P-branded stores, Waldbaum's offers in-house products under the America's Choice, Master Choice, Savings Plus, Simply Kids, MORE, Hartford Reserve, and Health Pride names.
Some believe that Waldbaum's is a subsidiary of the retail
Retail
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
giant Walmart due to the name, but there is no connection.
On December 13, 2005, Waldbaum's began offering online shopping.
On August 13, 2010, A&P (NYSE: GAPTQ), announced that it would close 25 stores as the parent of Waldbaum's began the implementation and execution phase of its comprehensive turnaround; these stores closed in October. Two of these stores were Waldbaum's; one each in Centereach and Levittown, both on Long Island.
In February 2011, A&P announced 32 further store closings, including three Long Island Waldbaum's: Farmingdale, Smithtown, and Valley Stream. These closed April 15, 2011.
Waldbaum's was referenced in the television shows The King of Queens
The King of Queens
The King of Queens is an American sitcom that originally ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007.This show was produced by Hanley Productions and CBS Productions , CBS Paramount Television ,and CBS Television Studios in association with Columbia TriStar Television , and Sony Pictures...
, Everybody Loves Raymond
Everybody Loves Raymond
Everybody Loves Raymond is an American television sitcom that originally ran on CBS from September 13, 1996, to May 16, 2005. Many of the situations from the show are based on the real-life experiences of lead actor Ray Romano, creator/producer Phil Rosenthal and the show's writing staff...
, and Happily Divorced
Happily Divorced
Happily Divorced is an American sitcom created by Fran Drescher and Peter Marc Jacobson. Inspired by their experiences, the series, which became TV Land's third original scripted series following Hot in Cleveland and Retired at 35, premiered on June 15, 2011, and revolves around a Los Angeles...
.