Bruno's

Bruno's is a grocery store chain which once claimed more than 150 locations and employed 14,000 in its Bruno's, Food World, Big B Drugs, and Vincent's Market stores. It currently operates 23 Bruno's and 43 Food World locations.

Joe Bruno founded the first store, called Bruno's Bros. Grocery, in 1932 with a $600 investment from his family. He operated the 800 square foot store with his brothers Angelo, Lee, and Anthony.

1960s-era logo

By 1959 the brothers had expanded the operation to 10 stores. They filed for incorporation and, over the course of the 1960s, opened 20 more stores across the state and launched the Big B Discount Drugs chain. During this period, the stores used "Bruno the Bear" as a mascot, with a cartoon bear appearing on signs and advertisements and a costumed bear appearing at special events and store opening.

The Food World chain of larger discount supermarkets was launched in 1972 with capital raised from the company's first public stock offering in 1971.

Joe Bruno retired as CEO in 1977. When the company celebrated it's 50th anniversary in 1983 it had 51 grocery stores in Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia, as well as 40 Big B stores and three warehouses. It began purchasing rival Food Fair stores that year, and launched the FoodMax brand in 1984. In 1988 the company founded Vincent's Market, named for Joe's father, Vincent Bruno, who emigrated to Birmingham from Sicily in 1908.

The chain was sold to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts for $1.2 billion in 1995. Three years later, with nearly $1 billion in debt, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. It came out of bankruptcy protection in 2000 and acquired 19 Delchamp's stores in January 2001.

In December 2001 it was acquired by Royal Ahold for $500 million. It was sold again, in December 2005 to Lone Star Funds, which merged the company headquarters into its Bi-Lo chain, based in South Carolina. It also sold 60 of the stores to New Hampshire's C&S Wholesale Grocers, which subsequently placed its Southern Family Markets divisional headquarters in the former Bruno's headquarters in Birmingham.

Lone Star spun Bruno's off from Bi-Lo in March 2007 and returned its headquarters to Birmingham. The company currently operates 65 stores in Alabama and north Florida. It employs 5,100, of which 3,000 are in the Birmingham metropolitan area.

In September 2008 the company announced plans to remodel all of its stores and construct three new ones. It hired Glendale, California-based Palladeo to conduct market research and generate retail strategies and designs for store upgrades and brand identity.

In February 2009 the company again filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Kent Moore stepped down as CEO and was replaced by turnaround specialist Jim Grady of New York's Alvarez and Marshal. The chain plans to continue operating as it reorganizes.

Locations

• 509 Alabama Highway 119, Alabaster
• 1675 Center Point Parkway, Center Point
• 335 Summit Boulevard, The Summit, Birmingham
• 126 Wildwood Parkway, Wildwood, Homewood
• 1561 Montgomery Highway, Hoover
• 3780 Riverchase Village, Hoover
• 1533 Montclair Road, Birmingham
• 100 Inverness Corners, Birmingham
• 2250 Alabama Highway 150, Hoover
• Five Points West
• Dora (opened August 1968)
• Jasper
• North Birmingham
• Fairfield
• Bessemer
• Powderly
• Woodlawn
• Pratt City

References

• Goodman, Sherri C. (August 19, 2007) "Now Texas-owned, grocery chain dates to 1932, wants to recapture local loyalties." Birmingham News
• Wells, Russell and Tim Hollis (January 13, 2007) "Bruno's Food Stores at Birmingham Rewound.
• Kent, Dawn (September 10, 2008) "Bruno's to roll out new look." Birmingham News
• "Birmingham-based Bruno's files Chapter 11 bankruptcy" (February 5, 2009) Birmingham News

External links

• Bruno's website