Publix #176 | Pix #170 - Franklin, TN
Publix #176
Franklin Marketplace
Franklin, TN 37064
Well, if you were surprised to see a former Albertsons on my blog two weeks ago, here's to exploring another one! I'll say that this store should look familiar, except for the parts that don't.
Why is that, you may ask? Well, we've seen no shortage of former Albertsons stores taken over by the Lakeland-based Publix on The Albertsons Florida Blog, and the former Grocery Palace we'll explore today is no different in that regard. On the other hand, what does make this structure unique is the fact that it was the first and only Albertsons built in Middle Tennessee: it is also tied for the title as the first, and thus oldest, Publix in The Volunteer State.
One company's loss (in this case Albertsons') can be another company's gain. Like we saw in Atlanta with Publix wiping up the remains of A&P, the Floridian grocer's first seven supermarkets in Tennessee were all acquired from Albertsons following the latter's exodus.
This store opened on October 2, 2002, but it wasn't until store #1016 opened in February 2005 when Tennessee received its first Publix built from the ground up. Close to two decades later, the chain now operates 58 stores in the state: a surprisingly low number considering how there are already 54 stores in North Carolina, a state Publix entered in 2014.
We've previously learned about how Albertsons entered and exited the Nashville Metro, but let's take a closer look at how this specific store got its start.
After dipping its toes into the Cumberland River by acquiring 11 former Bruno's FoodMax stores in 1998, the Idaho grocer decided it was time to try a design of its own with #4736.
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| The Tennessean (Newspapers.com) - June 6, 2001 |
Plans for the new store really began to take shape in 2001 when construction at the Marketplace at Franklin finally got underway; this followed a three-year stint where the roughly 50-acre site sat cleared and empty. In addition to the 57,500 sq ft supermarket, developers also secured the lease for a new Home Depot and formed plans for an additional 19,200 sq ft of retail space to house the likes of a liquor store, a hair salon, a dry cleaners, and a Quizno's sandwich shop.
The article above goes on to mention plans for a fourth Williamson County Albertsons that never came to fruition. Albertsons abandoned the Thompson's Station parcel upon the chain's exit from Middle Tennessee and the land was eventually used to build a Kroger Marketplace. Publix was rumored to have been interested in the site, despite ultimately settling for a space just to the south.
So how can I already be discussing this store's demise without mention of its grand opening? That's because Albertsons #4736, which made its debut in late July 2001, was only in operation for a whopping 8 months before the company called it quits in Music City. The store officially closed for good at 5 PM on April 4, 2002, along with the 6 other remaining area Albertsons. If you thought the Hattiesburg store was short lived, think again!
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| The Tennessean (Newspapers.com) - August 22, 2002 - Page 2 |
Another interesting statistic is that it took Publix almost as long to convert this store as it did for Albertsons to open and close it. Furthermore, it drew much more of a media flurry during its transition than when it opened as an Albertsons the prior year. Trust me, I tried my best to include every article discussing #4736 while in operation and there simply weren't many!
Come October, The Tennessean states that, "Publix opened its first day in Franklin with free Boar's Head hot dogs, balloons for the kids, carnations for the women, a visit from the green mascot Publixsaurus and a parking lot full of customers."
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| Courtesy Publix |
According to customer Christi Taylor, Publix "'is like a breath of fresh air compared to Kroger . . . The produce looked a lot better than what I've been used to . . . They're clean. They've got a good selection. It's definitely something we needed here.'"
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| The Tennessean (Newspapers.com) - November 3, 2002 |
So, it seems like the store was very well received, right? Well, not entirely. It wouldn't be an entry into a new market for Publix without a run-in with the local chapter of the UFCW. Since the grocer purchased six formerly unionized stores and was about compete with the bountiful number unionized Kroger stores, the union wanted to make sure Publix knew that it couldn't move to town without a fight. In the end, I bet you can guess who won that skirmish (and it wasn't the union).
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| The Tennessean (Newspapers.com) - June 21, 2002 |
Speaking of battles, I finally rediscovered the article above describing how Publix essentially blitzkrieged the Atlanta market in the 1990's to take the #2 spot in the region by the end of the decade. The chain was ambitious to open 7 stores in Tennessee out of the gate, but we have yet to see the same type of bold moves from Georgia happen elsewhere: Chuck Gilmer from The Shelby Report was indeed proved right with his prediction. That still doesn't mean we won't see history repeat itself in Kentucky though . . .
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| The Tennessean (Newspapers.com) - October 2, 2002 |
On the other hand, the biggest complaint from shoppers was that, "you might want to make sunglasses that first purchase at a Publix . . . The supermarket's famous bright lighting puts a glow on the produce and a gleam on cans and jars." It was noted that Publix greatly increased the lighting in the formerly dim Albertsons all while installing new flooring and some unexpected wall decorations: those from the "Classy Market 1.0" or Kiwi package.
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| The Tennessean (Newspapers.com) - September 27, 2004 |
It was almost two years ago to the day when I was browsing through Newspapers.com in search of any new Publix photos I could find. On that fateful day, I unearthed the article above describing Publix' successful entry into the Nashville market and the company's plans to expand with new stores of its own. Atop that article was a crystal clear color photo from "the Publix store in Franklin". I instantly recognized the space as being Publix #176 and noticed how the old Albertsons "wavy wall" now featured a marbled serif "D" on a light green wall accompanied by some navy and teal aisle markers. This could only mean one thing: Classy Market 1.0 was older than we had originally thought and didn't always use the familiar green aisle signage.
You may also recognize the banners in the sunflower photo above from this photo I included in my Publix #852 post, and that's because both stores opened with an early version of the package back in 2002. Despite #852 retaining banners of some sort, #176 seems to have had its removed long ago.
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| Courtesy Publix (Instagram) - October 2, 2002 |
The specific details of the interior design will have to wait for a later date, so let's just take a moment to enjoy all of the high-quality photos Publix posted to Instagram several years ago from this store's grand opening. I was dumbfounded once I realized this was a photo of #176, and it just so happens to showcase the old Albertsons pharmacy island behind Plato and the old triangular bakery overhang off in the distance. It's also interesting to see how the matte flooring in the foreground transitions to the polished, checkered vinyl along the old "Beverage Boulevard" corridor.
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| Courtesy Publix (Instagram) - October 2, 2002 |
On the flip side (of the island), we see where Publix' in-store coffee shop was housed adjacent to the customer service desk. Isn't it nice how the Grocery Palace columns and trim blended so well with CM 1.0?
To continue the fun, in 2003, US Bank opened branches in 6 of the acquired Albertsons stores. This was presumably in Albertsons' former AmSouth bank space along the front wall.
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| Courtesy Peter G M. (Foursquare) - April 13, 2013 |
As time marched on, so did this store. By the time the 2010's rolled around, this Publix had received its first remodel to Invigorate / Classy Market 2.0. The fact that it retained the older style of aisle markers makes me believe those too could have been painted like the ones I came across at #515. It also looks like this remodel is when Publix axed the old pharmacy box and moved the department to the front left corner of the store. It would have been situated approximately where the photographer was standing to capture the image above.
The big changes also seemed to take place at a lower level – the floor, that is. As we can see, the strange combination of matte and glossy floors we saw in the Plato picture are no longer present, presumably because the scar from the pharmacy box was too hard to conceal.
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| Courtesy David H. (Yelp) - August 7, 2016 |
The store was again remodeled to the Bamboo package around 2014. The "wavy wall" off in the distance looks quite plain having just received a coat of blue paint and a single "Frozen" department sign.
Now that we know all about this store's past, let's examine its present state.
Despite discontinuing this logo back in 2015 or so, I'm still surprised that I stumble upon it on full display as often as I do. Publix doesn't seem too keen about removing it from building exteriors, either, and I've even seen it survive atop customer service counters following Bamboo to Evergreen remodels. Not to mention the ample number of semi trailers that still have it plastered to the rear door. I doubt most people realize it has been phased out, which makes me wonder why Publix has bothered getting rid of it anywhere. At least that hopefully means this sign won't be taken down anytime soon.
I think my next surprise upon entering this store was how the bulk of its cart fleet still consisted of the circa 2013 non-Euro handle Technibilt buggies. Yes, there are a few of the newer-style carts mixed in, but the vast majority were still the short-lived ones with the snap-on handles. Publix has recently been on a cart replacement rampage, so I wouldn't be surprised if most of these have been replaced by the new grey carts since my last visit.
Once inside the store, I can't say it looks that much different from most modern Publixes. The old pharmacy and floral island has been removed from the immediate foreground, leaving behind only the "new" customer service counter.
Likewise, Floral was moved to the front wall making this part of the store feel like a 45M as well (just without the bakery).
What also doesn't surprise me is this this store has a salad bar – only the upscale or higher volume locales get one and the surrounding area seems to fit those metrics.
Turning to the left, we see the produce department come into view in addition to the cases for prepackaged deli meats.
I think my August 2023 visit to the store was the first time I noticed the new Evergreen-era signage for these deli coolers, and it seems like the placards have since been rolled out everywhere to replace the old ones. Something else that has been rolling out lately is Publix' new packaging for deli salads & sides which replaces the all black look from circa 2019.
I'd be curious to know why the white tile wall was originally installed behind the current floral department because I think Albertsons used this space for its reading center. It seems like Publix would have used the checkered pattern for the entire wall if it had installed the surface from scratch.
What I'm even more confused by, though, is the fact that this store has those tile overlays in the first place. I've only ever seen them in stores which remodeled to Sienna before 2015, but this store had a circa 2014 Bamboo install meaning it didn't get Sienna until roughly 2019. I already knew that Bamboo was a strange hodge-podge of a package, and the fact that this store got the extra tiles borrowed from CM 3.0 (rather than leaving the walls as they were) shouldn't surprise me in the least.
Jumping to the deli itself, we see the brown tile overlay which presumably covers up Albertsons' old Grocery Palace design. If you zoom in above the Hawaiian rolls, you can still see the brown tile trim running the perimeter of that column (which is about the best example of Grocery Palace tile we'll see today). If only I had taken a better picture of it!
Maybe you can see that tile trim a bit better from this angle? I remember noticing that something was off about it while in the store, but figured it wasn't worth the effort of dodging the deli employees to get a better view.
Turning around, we find that this store still has its international foods on aisle 1. Two decades ago, many Publixes used this space for such or had wine lining walkway; however, it seems to be increasingly rare to not find juice and sports drinks facing the produce department.
Likewise, the international foods run the entire length of the aisle offering the rarer Indian and Kosher signs in additional to the typical ones for Asian and Mexican fare.
The old cut produce counter has since been obscured by an upright case for salads & such despite the rest of the produce department seemingly remaining original to Albertsons' layout.
I'm at a loss for describing this image; anybody want a banana?
The bakery is also where Albertsons' would have been, it's just that Publix reworked the alcove and reconstructed the accent wall during either the Invigorate or Bamboo remodel.
I'm not sure I've ever seen this particular Sienna tile overlay featuring the brown accents. It seems like nearly every other bakery remodel from this era included retiling the whole wall to match a new-construction store. I would have gotten a better picture had those ladies not been looking at the cake design book
Pressing on, we find a host of baked goods housed on the back aisle between the produce department and the first outpost of Meats.
Peering down aisle two, we are presented with something that you most definitely won't see today: an extensive selection of Quaker oatmeal. Following last year's salmonella recall, I have yet to see my beloved Quaker Oatmeal Squares cereal return to shelves and I'm starting to wonder if it ever will. I should have stocked up!
Aisle 5 is similarly well-stocked with oils and spices: remember when even spices were hard to come by back in 2020?
You've probably noticed it by now, but this store utilizes Publix' "random brown tile" floor design which only seems to have been used in these Nashville-area acquired stores. Unfortunately, there's no game of Tetris here! This looks much more tame than the old Grocery Palace flooring.
Turning toward the old International Deli, we see that Publix has recently installed new refrigerated cases which feature motion sensors and doors.
I don't know what it is about former Albertsons stores, but they seem to be some of the only places where I come across this charcoal stock photo. The tiny Publix #720 also had it, but that seems to be the one obvious outlier. Maybe all of these stores just happened to come up for a light remodel around 2019?
Something else that was very light was the seafood counter. It's interesting how the adjacent butcher counter didn't receive its own signage, but I guess that's because the department already has its moment of fame on either side of the protrusion. If you'll remember from last time, the store's HVAC units are directly above the service departments.
At least it still got its own custom Sienna tile overlay (just like we saw at Publix #672)!
Let's recede back into the grocery aisles before somebody sees us causing all of this commotion. I wonder what we can find on aisle 9.
Some killer bread, of course!
Next up, we find my most photographed aisle: the pet aisle. It doesn't matter what store I go to, I typically end up with a picture of the dog food aisle in my collection because it never seems to have people on it. Aisle 10 was no different here.
If only I were two aisles over . . .
Aisle 11 was similarly lacking in people, which is surprising considering all of the aluminum pans that were on BOGO this week. I guess shoppers weren't flocking to them as Publix had hoped.
Did somebody say, "Publix Premium All Occasions napkins"? I thought so.
Honestly, what a random product category to receive a Publix Premium item. The moniker is typically reserved for special products in special categories, but they always seem to be really obscure. Sure the (formerly) Publix Premium seasonal ice cream flavors made sense or the various "artisan" frozen entrées, but why are there Publix Premium tweezers?
Returning to the back of the store, we see the signed portion of the meat department along with the air return for the giant HVAC system.
We'll take a brief look at the rest of the department and how it flows into the back left corner of the store before returning to this subject momentarily.
Let's also take a quick look at aisle 14 which offers a whole host of health and beauty products in addition to four of the random brown tiles. It was special.
No dairy barn here, but the milk fridge is still just where Albertsons put it back in 2001.
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| Courtesy The Albertsons Florida Blog - Former Albertsons #4462 |
Other than the stores being mirrored images of each other, can't you see the similarities?
Now, for the thing I was most excited to see: The Wavy Wall. I thought Publix had ripped most of these old soffits out by the time these buildings entered the latter 2010's, but they apparently didn't mind the one here. Maybe the Florida division in charge of the other 50-some-odd former Albertsons stores doesn't communicate with the team in charge of this single Grocery Palace store, so things get a little disjointed.
I honestly think this feature looks great with Sienna and adds a nice dimension to this side of the store that would otherwise be absent. Other than having to shift over the aisle marker for #17, Publix didn't have to do much to accommodate the extra structure either.
Considering how this store has been in Publix' fleet for close to a decade longer than any other Grocery Palace (I think, AFB may correct me), it's also no surprise that it received a different treatment over the years. After all, most other former Albertsons stores weren't even around for the Kiwi era!
What luscious undulations!
I appreciate how Publix added the tan band to the structure in order to give it some subtle ornamentation. The use of two "Frozen" department signs also helps spruce things up from the Bamboo era.
Well, wasn't aisle 17 a wild ride? At the end of the line, we find the pharmacy counter which was relocated from the entrance of the store to Albertsons' old pet corner. We can also see a perfect example of Publix' circa 2019 pharmacy signage that includes the new logo but the old Sienna woodgrain. Publix had already ditched this design by 2020 in favor of one that matches Evergreen better.
On aisle 18, we lost the pleasure of seeing the grated light diffusers, but that's probably for the best considering how shabby most of the remaining ones look in modern times. I'm also guessing that Publix' strip lights make this space brighter than it would have been with Albertsons even though it is still dimmer than the rest of the store.
At least this is one piece of the store that is frozen in time, wouldn't you say?
It looks like the floor tiles in a big chunk of this aisle were replaced at some point. I presume that coincided with freezer replacements, but I also wonder if that was a consequence of Publix adding wine to the store following Tennessee's 2016 legalization.
There was certainly plenty of wine here by the time I stopped in 7 years later.
It was a bit strange to see how wide this aisle was, especially with the half-height shelves to my right.
If it wasn't for the branching HVAC ducts spanning the ceiling, I'd think I was simply looking at a 54M Publix right now. These few short aisles of H&BA products are arranged exactly as they would be in a store the chain built from the ground up.
I also always find it interesting when a Publix aisle marker only advertises a single product. Aisle 15 is the lucky one in this case, but we saw a similar setup with greeting cards back in Prattville.
Anyway, that will conclude our visit(s) of Publix #176, but let's take a quick glance at some real estate materials before heading across the parking lot to a special convenience store.
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| Courtesy Crossman & Company - Publix #176 - 2023 |
For being a store that Publix didn't build, I'd say the company has done a good job of making it look like home. Even the façade seems to resemble some of the Publix designs from the early-2000's, complete with two points of egress.
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| Courtesy Crossman & Company - Franklin Marketplace site plan |
But wait, there's more! Not only was this the Nashville Metro's only new construction Albertsons, but it was also the only area Albertsons to receive an Express gas station. Let's take a look at the space marked by the Marathon logo in the map above.
Max's Convenience Shop
Franklin Marketplace
Franklin, TN 37064
On my first trip to #176, I intended to stop in the old convenience store out front to see what relics I may find. After all, I knew it had quite the storied past. While it had already closed for the night, what I could see through the front of it simply whet my pallet.
Since I was a bit short on time this week, I decided to let my assistant GeorgiaPubDude write today's history lesson. Let's see what he dug up.
Publix PIX was a chain of gasoline-convenience stores that operated in Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee. It first got its start in 2000 when Publix tested the idea of a station in Tampa at #611. Ultimately, this station got scrapped due to the need of land for parking in the shopping center.
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| Courtesy formulanone (Flickr) - February 17, 2012 - Publix Pix #806 - Lakeland, FL |
This soon led to other markets getting gas stations starting around 2001. The initial Lakeland and Winter Haven stores featured a small 1,200 sq ft kiosk with gas pumps on either side.
By 2002, Publix decided to expand the concept to Kissimmee (Poinciana) and Deltona by opening larger locations topping at 4,000 sq ft. The newer concept featured convenience stores with a variety of fresh foods, car washes, and of course, gasoline.
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| Courtesy Andy Callahan (Flickr) - January 17, 2010 - Publix Pix in Largo, FL |
It wasn't long before the concept morphed again. By 2003, Publix submitted plans to build two new Pix stations in Casselberry and Spring Hill which only featured a 160 sq ft payment kiosk.
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| The Tennessean (Newspapers.com) - June 27, 2001 |
The chain then expanded to Tennessee in 2005 by reopening one of Nashville's first grocery store gas stations: this former Albertsons Express. What's interesting is that Publix acquired this location back in 2002 along with the Franklin Marketplace supermarket, but let it sit empty until it figured Pix was ready for prime time.
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| Courtesy The Ledger - Publix Pix #808 - Poinciana, FL |
Publix continued to expand Pix with new locations in Clermont & Rockledge, FL, and Perry & Alpharetta, GA. In 2009, Publix spokesperson Shannon Patten said that they were trying to find the best prototype of PIX mixing factors including products and size.
Eventually, the Pix dream would begin to trail because despite the claim that there would be over 150 stores by 2013, there were only 14.
In 2013, Publix decided it would be better to focus on its primary vertical, groceries, rather than continuing to spend money on gas stations. This resulted in all 14 Pix stores closing with 13 being sold to Circle K and the lone Tennessee store going to Max Arnold, a Kentucky based brand.
So here we are, back with the Sing Oil Blogger in the saddle.
You see, this Albertsons Express took a slightly different trajectory than most of the Florida stores we've seen in the past because it wasn't sold directly to an independent operator.
In quite the unexpected move, Publix decided it would instead purchase the station along with the supermarket and operate it as one of its own short-lived Pix convenience stores. Since we learned that this was the only Pix not sold to Circle K (and we know what Circle K does to convenience stores), it will be interesting to see what may be left behind here.
Take a look at those fancy touchscreen Wayne fuel pumps! Doesn't it just make pumping gas so much more enjoyable when you have a big a** tablet in your face for Maria Menounos and Cheddar News to yell at you through?
At least the lights were on one of the times I visited this time . . .
. . . because they were all turned off for my visit when the store was actually open. Shouldn't it have been the other way around?
Oh boy, that is unexpected: Publix recycled the Albertsons Express décor!
Publix recycled the Albertsons Express décor.
pUbLiX rEcyCleD tHe aLeRtSoNs eXpreSs dÉcoR.
Oh boy, that is unexpected: this store had a coffee station blocking my view of the cashier counter.
Okay, I need to give some analysis rather than just repeating myself. On the other hand, I was a bit dumbfounded when I discovered that Publix seemingly left everything from Albertsons in place when they moved in with the Pix concept.
Even the old Express I photographed in Pensacola had removed the wall sconces and featured black grates on the wall rather than red ones like we see here. It's possible that there were variations of the interior design, but it is also possible that one of these stores painted things.
Regardless, I know the wall paneling in here is also 100% original, and I'm inclined to say that the signs for "fountain" and "cold food" are the only pieces of Publix we see here.
Back outside, I also remember seeing a Publix "think twice" security camera sign still hanging by the gas pumps. The road sign for the two businesses was also, unsurprisingly, still joined at the hip. I just wish my phone had not overexposed the Publix sign.
Notice the Home Goods which has taken up residence in the old BI-LO across the street.
Our last look will be the only photographic evidence of this store as a Pix: an old Google Street View.
So, what did you think? Did you have fun on our Nashville adventure? I thought it was pretty cool, and the old Pix Express was a nice twist too.
In any regard, that will do it for today's post, but make sure to check back in a few weeks to see what else I've gotten myself into.
Until then,
- The Sing Oil Blogger
