Former Winn-Dixie #1220 - Westminister, SC

 

Ingles Markets #249

Former Winn-Dixie Marketplace #1220

1049 East Main Street

Westminster, SC  29693

Marketplace Madness 2024:  Something Borrowed

For additional news regarding the ALDI acquisition of Southeastern Grocers, click here.

Roughly one year ago, Ryan B. and I were discussing Winn-Dixie oddities we had come across over the years.  It was during this conversation that he sent a picture from a mysterious South Carolina Ingles featuring what were obvious Winn-Dixie Marketplace relics on the walls.  I immediately knew I had to see this store for myself but ended up waiting until a trip to Greenville in November before stopping by.  (You'll eventually see that trip was well worth its own post considering the fascinating discoveries I made.)

On the drive back, I decided to take the 30-minute detour off the interstate to experience the small town amidst the rainy fall weather just before dusk.

In many regions where the Jacksonville grocer vacated long ago, Winn-Dixie is mere folklore in the minds of local residents.  What many may not realize, however, is how smaller chains have given the long-gone looks a second life with a new outlook.  The Beef People may have thought they would escape like a thief in the night, yet their essence remains evermore. 

As for how this enchanted edifice was erected, the quaint town of only 2,300 people received its brand new 45,000 square foot Marketplace in early 1998.

The Anderson Independent-Mail (Newspapers.com) - May 7, 1997

I'm still a bit surprised that WD built a new Deli Café store in such a small town; regardless, it replaced an older WD next door that had likely become cramped.  Said building was more recently home to a Fred's and has now been subdivided into a Dollar Tree.

The new location only lasted seven years before the company announced it was shuttering its entire Greenville Division, which included an estimated 47 outlets, in June 2005.  According to Clemson finance professor John Alexander who was interviewed for the article, "Winn-Dixie faced stiff competition from Wal-Mart and Publix's entrance into the local market."  It is interesting to see how Publix' expansion outside of Florida coincided with Winn-Dixie's downfall.

Anderson Independent-Mail (Newspapers.com) - December 6, 2006

Following the February 2005 bankruptcy, the now-closed Westminster WD was sold to Ingles Markets at auction in August 2006.  The Asheville, NC-based company then reopened the store on September 30, 2007, which was a relief to local shoppers who had to drive to nearby Seneca for over two years.

The Anderson Independent-Mail (Newspapers.com) - December 15, 2011

Despite thinking they were done with all of the beef, the city of Westminster was still dealing with the fallout of the Winn-Dixie bankruptcy into the 2010's.  As part of the court proceedings, the flailing company exchanged stock for debt in which case the municipality received 1,149 shares valued at $12,639 in 2005 for $20,000 in outstanding utility bills.  By 2011, that lump of stock was only worth half of what it was in 2005, leaving the city on the hook with close to $14,000 of Winn-Dixie's debt if the stock was sold.

I remember seeing a list showing a whole host of local governments and utilities that Winn-Dixie owed money to back in 2005, and I'd imagine that most ended up in a similar situation to Westminster where they were not made whole.

On that note, I'd imagine that local residents would like to forget about the grocer who once graced their streets.  Unfortunately for them, that distant memory is not difficult to recall with the store we will be touring today. 

Pulling in, it was hard to miss that this was a Winn-Dixie, as it was a bit jarring to see the "figure 8" Ingles logo affixed in an obvious Winn-Dixie sign frame.  Talk about an alternate universe – I don't even think this store has been painted since The Beef People left!

Walking up to the entrance, I could already tell this was going to be a good one . . . simply based on the fact that the original swinging doors remained in place.  Oh, and what was clearly visible through those large windows . . .

Just inside, this store immediately took me back to my visits of the Eufaula WD and the LaGrange Pig-Dixie as it was essentially still a Rose & Teal Marketplace in all but name only.  The sepia picture of the truck may be from Ingles, but all of my other surroundings were straight outta Jax.

Here we find an assortment of promotional items and "Food Bag Donation's [sic]" in the nook just beyond the cart storage area at the front of the store.  WD may have originally used this space for its wine department; however, it was relegated to promotional products in later years.

Over in the Produce Patch Green Grocer, we find an eclectic mix of old and new, borrowed and blue.  With that, the only major changes were made to the temporary and permanent department signage and a few of the stand-alone fixtures.  I still wonder why they even bothered with that; maybe Winn-Dixie had a trademark on the "Produce Patch" branding?

Even without one form of alliterative branding, the message is still clear as to what this space used to look like.

It also must be a thing with Carolinian grocers to have the checkouts where customers roll the buggy straight up to the cashier who then unloads items as he or she is scanning them.  I know The Fresh Market does this as well.

Also, that is a ton of soft drink bottles.

As for above the register lines, we find our familiar lower ceiling fixture where all of the center florescent lights are interestingly switched off.

It's hard to fault grocers in smaller markets, but it often makes me appreciate shopping at a store that receives a higher traffic volume.  For starters, more people mean less produce and fresh foods that look to be past their prime.  This Ingles seemed to do well with the staples, but like Winn-Dixie, the more obscure vegetables, like radishes and eggplants, looked a little worse for the wear.  I suppose that is a tough balance to strike between variety and freshness. 

While I do appreciate the vintage photographs, I feel like the cornucopia cartoon horrendously clashes with the otherwise pristine Golden Girls aesthetic.  Oh yeah, and that "Harvest Fresh Produce" text is another leftover from Winn-Dixie (if you have not already realized that). 

Turning to the left, we see Marketplace scenes galore, featuring the familiar floral department (albeit with an Ingles sign), along with the delightful neon deli in the distance.

Ingles determined that the former "Wall of Values" would be better suited for a bountiful selection of bread.  At least the teal background on the bead sign sort of matches the teal diamond's background.

Oh my gosh – an intact Deli Café!

Probably the most interesting piece of this store was how Ingles had left Winn-Dixie's old Deli Café in place.  This at least makes sense considering how every Ingles I have visited in recent memory had a salad bar; however, I've never seen this setup remain in a "modern" Marketplace.  Winn-Dixie removed these long ago in order to cut down on spoilage following the bankruptcy, and the similarly well preserved Pig-Dixie only kept the "Cheese World" sign.  I suppose that's why it is important to see both examples of a store that is still under its original ownership and others that have been divested long ago.  

Likewise, the coolers just out of the frame to my right still featured pre-packaged luncheon meats, as was original to this store's layout, rather than cold beer like a WD of this stature would currently boast.

Otherwise, the store felt like most of the other un-remodeled Winn-Dixies I've been to, for better or worse.  Honestly though, I've come to appreciate these throwback supermarkets much more than I once did considering how they have become surprisingly rare.  I never thought this day would come!

I will point out how Ingles removed a bit of the old pink and teal tile under the café seating area.  If you zoom into the off-white squares, you'll see how they are perfectly spaced to line up with the tile pattern seen here (just not diagonal).

Continuing past the deli and meat counters (which must've had people there or else I would have snapped a few more pictures), we find our first example of a truly Laser-etched Winn-Dixie scene.

Part of the draw for me about these 1990's Marketplace stores is not that I particularly like the color choices (Pepto pink is a choice, though) but more because I appreciate the effort the designers put into the package to cover the store with ornamentation.  It's gaudy, yes, but it is bold, and it is undeniably cohesive.  Most importantly, it is memorable.  It's really a shame that this package has gone down as one of the most dilapidated and forlorn because it was quite impressive in its original form.

Thankfully, this Ingles still felt put together despite boasting a decades-old package from a bankrupt competitor.  Despite the imperfect modifications and maintenance, the space still felt clean and presentable.

And that leads me to a broader statement regarding the Ingles stores I've visited:  they typically aren't ultra-modern or flashy, but they often seem to be well-stocked and well cared for.  They also have an amazing fresh muffin selection at the bakery (well worth the 600 calories each).

Here's a perfect example: Winn-Dixie's old "Thank You for Shopping at America's Supermarket" tagline still has all of its letters in place and has a nicely placed Ingles logo to boot!  

Speaking of that logo, I'm still immensely confused as to why the NC company uses this "fox tail" logo on all of its branding except for its storefronts.  I don't recall seeing a single building with this badge, even modern stores; meanwhile, I haven't seen a single modern product or display with the old "figure 8" graphic.

Continuing on, we find the customer service counter boasting the same signage it has borne for the last quarter-century, just with the old W/D icon blocked out.

Taking a quarter turn to my right, we find one of the frozen foods aisles featuring the iconic Marketplace diamond floor design.  Considering how there are former or current Winn-Dixies in at least six states that still have this tile pattern must mean that it has withstood the test of time (or it just requires too much effort to remove).  Like South Carolina, several of the other states that come to mind haven't even had a Winn-Dixie since 2005!  

Judging by the different model of freezers on either side of the aisle and the patched tiles on the left, I'd say that this store originally had the familiar line of coffin coolers running down the middle.  It appears that Ingles found some fixtures which are even older than the circa 1998 ones The Beef People installed!

Continuing on, we find the "Fresh Meats" sign devoid of its "America's Supermarket" or "Beef People" tagline and WD chek.  We also see more tile that has been replaced under the pedestal cooler in front of us.

Another thing Ingles managed to do is keep all of the original neon in working order.  Some WD stores also managed to keep up the signage, while others weren't quite so lucky.  I suppose the Asheville, NC-based grocer still uses neon in quite a few of its stores so maybe they have a repairman handy.

I also just realized how the deli sign is placed above the pink accent bar while the meat and seafood sign splits it.  It's interesting how the sign for the latter is so much taller.

Furthermore, I've noticed several other active Winn-Dixie stores have the same 2D text on this "Frozen Meats" sign rather than the 3D lettering like all of the other department signs.  I wonder if this was an early department shift that all of these stores received, considering how this 2005 casualty received the signage, or if the sign was just different to begin with.

Conversely, none of the Winn-Dixie category markers have survived, as the polar bear ones we see are standard issue from Ingles.

I believe the aisle markers are from Ingles' latest package and are by far the element that clashes the most with the WD stock.  Rustic wood and 1990's Rose & Teal do not mix well!  The previous ones at least partially matched the rest of the store's design.

Ingles decided it was best to sacrifice the old double-wide dairy aisle to make room for a larger wine display.

While mimosa mixologists were disappointed by my last post, they can again rejoice at the sight of champagne and orange juice being together again.

This picture is so moody:  on the one hand, you have the massive, soft, half-lit department sign looming at the top of the frame while on the other, you have the perfectly stocked yogurt display illuminated with a harsh 5000k florescent light.  The juxtaposition creates quite the visual interest!

That interest is slightly marred by the chaotic scene on the rest of the aisle, though.  I guess we are gifted another strange juxtaposition between a 2020's Ingles on the left and a 1990's Winn-Dixie on the right.

It's a bit washed out, but we can see Ingles' own neon bakery sign over the namesake counter.  I'm guessing the original WD stock burned out and the current owners decided to replace the sign rather than repair it?  Regardless, I've seen this same lettering in plenty of modern stores.

This store had no pharmacy, despite Ingles running health care operations in select other locations.  I suppose Westminster is just too small for their liking.

Closing out our adventure, we'll take one last look at the store's front end before checking out.  What did you think of this Ing-Dixie?

I feel like this store really did capture the essence of "something borrowed" considering how Ingles made it look as if the company was just another brand of Southeastern Grocers.  Closures and acquisitions can do a lot of strange things, and while we may see all of the remaining WD Marketplaces disappear soon following the Aldi acquisition, there will still be plenty ghosts of grocers past haunting our memories.

And that will conclude this week's coverage, but make sure to check back in two weeks for this year's fourth and final chapter of Marketplace Madness: Something Blue.  Also, take note of the ladder in the corner of the frame.  That's a clue from my other adventure of the day . . .

Until next time,

- The Sing Oil Blogger