Gigante History
Posted: 19 Aug 2007 22:24
Wow, didn't see this one coming. This store opened as a Max Foods in the 90's and closed in 2000 to reopen as a Gigante.
From the SGV Tribune:
Latino supermarket to close doors
By Airan Scruby Correspondent
Residents of Pico Rivera looking for a little Latin flavor in their groceries may soon notice a gigante void in their supermarket options.
The city's Gigante supermarket on Whittier Boulevard will close Sunday after seven years of serving the community.
Pico Rivera Store Director Juan Luis said he was brought in to Pico Rivera to shutter the 60,000-square-foot store two to three months ago. He would not comment further on the store closing its doors.
Company executives did not return phone calls for comment.
The Gigante Supermarkets chain was founded in Mexico and is widely recognized there. The company began its expansion into the U.S. in 2000 and currently operates nine supermarkets in the United States, including the stores in Pico Rivera, Santa Fe Springs and Covina.
The store was popular among Latinos in the area for the wide selection of traditionally Latino foods, the Spanish-speaking staff and signs written in English and Spanish.
One customer, Rosa Ruelas, 54, said many products at Gigante are hard to find elsewhere.
"They have a lot of things I really need," Ruelas said. "When I read they were closing, I felt sad. The people who work here are so nice."
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Gigante's frugal prices are also a large draw for customers looking for a bargain.
"I'm not too happy about it because their prices are really reasonable," Lydia Lopez said. Lopez, 45, said she may shop at Food-4-Less when Gigante closes, but is not looking forward to the inconvenience of finding a new grocery store.
A Time magazine article in 2003 said Gigante endured early controversies over labor problems when the company resisted unionization for workers. Critics claimed the supermarket used racist practices by hiring primarily Latinos, many of whom did not speak English and were willing to accept sub-market wages.
Gigante eventually reached an agreement with the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, and the store in Pico Rivera thrived, outdoing profits of other grocery stores in the area.
Web site records show the Pico Rivera store is the first Gigante in the United States to be shut down.
Eddie Valdez, 58, pointed to competition with Wal-Mart and other grocery stores in the area as a reason for the closure. Valdez said he does not shop regularly at Gigante, but uses the store when he is in the area.
From the SGV Tribune:
Latino supermarket to close doors
By Airan Scruby Correspondent
Residents of Pico Rivera looking for a little Latin flavor in their groceries may soon notice a gigante void in their supermarket options.
The city's Gigante supermarket on Whittier Boulevard will close Sunday after seven years of serving the community.
Pico Rivera Store Director Juan Luis said he was brought in to Pico Rivera to shutter the 60,000-square-foot store two to three months ago. He would not comment further on the store closing its doors.
Company executives did not return phone calls for comment.
The Gigante Supermarkets chain was founded in Mexico and is widely recognized there. The company began its expansion into the U.S. in 2000 and currently operates nine supermarkets in the United States, including the stores in Pico Rivera, Santa Fe Springs and Covina.
The store was popular among Latinos in the area for the wide selection of traditionally Latino foods, the Spanish-speaking staff and signs written in English and Spanish.
One customer, Rosa Ruelas, 54, said many products at Gigante are hard to find elsewhere.
"They have a lot of things I really need," Ruelas said. "When I read they were closing, I felt sad. The people who work here are so nice."
Advertisement
Click Here!
Gigante's frugal prices are also a large draw for customers looking for a bargain.
"I'm not too happy about it because their prices are really reasonable," Lydia Lopez said. Lopez, 45, said she may shop at Food-4-Less when Gigante closes, but is not looking forward to the inconvenience of finding a new grocery store.
A Time magazine article in 2003 said Gigante endured early controversies over labor problems when the company resisted unionization for workers. Critics claimed the supermarket used racist practices by hiring primarily Latinos, many of whom did not speak English and were willing to accept sub-market wages.
Gigante eventually reached an agreement with the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, and the store in Pico Rivera thrived, outdoing profits of other grocery stores in the area.
Web site records show the Pico Rivera store is the first Gigante in the United States to be shut down.
Eddie Valdez, 58, pointed to competition with Wal-Mart and other grocery stores in the area as a reason for the closure. Valdez said he does not shop regularly at Gigante, but uses the store when he is in the area.