[TheStranger]

First time I ever heard of this chain was from a June 1960 Chain Store Age article, "Safeway, Jordano's open prestige units in Santa Barbara" (page W8) which I also quoted in the Safeway divested markets thread (as there is a vintage shot of the Victoria/Chapala gable there).

Anyway, here's the relevant text and photo from that piece:

The newest Jordano's unit, the seventh and largest in the chain, matches the Safeway in style. Set in a shopping center in suburban Goleta, the 22,000 square-foot market has an arched overhang in accordance with the other stores in the center. The market interior has a quality finish throughout.

[runchadrun]

I found the obituary of one of the founders, Frank Jordano, in the 9/16/1965 issue of the LA Times. The chain was started by the 4 Jordano brothers in 1915 and it grew to 8 locations in the Santa Barbara area and Lompoc.

In 1971 the company plead guilty to charges of income tax evasion. Smith's Food King bought the supermarkets sometime in the 1970s.

By 1982 Jordano's had turned into a wholesale distribution, wine, and liquor company. (It probably took place when Smith's bought the stores but 1982 is the first reference I have to this new line of business.) They are still listed in the phone book.

[Jeff]

A little history on jordanos.com:

Over the following years Jordano's grew tremendously, soon moving up to 729 State St., then on to 1029 State St. The first large market (for 1923) was located at the present downtown site of Nordstrom. The eighth store on upper State Street where Long's Drug Store now sits, was the first built in Santa Barbara after World War II in 1951. Its opening was delayed for four months while the State Street extension past Constance Avenue was completed.

By the early 1970s, Jordano's had weathered two world wars, the Depression and a number of minor recessions, and had still managed to expand with 18 stores throughout Santa Barbara, Ventura and San Luis Obispo counties, and a healthy distributing business stocking hotels and restaurants. One son from each of the original four brothers joined the family business, including Peter C. Jordano, who leads Jordano's Inc. today.

In the 1970s, Jordano's went through a dramatic transformation. Peter Jordano, watching the growth of large national grocery store chains, decided to adjust Jordano's to the changing times. Focusing on distributorships, Jordano's sold their grocery stores after over 60 years of business. It was a difficult time for Jordano's, but having gained the loyalty of their customers and employees they soon began a new period of growth. Within a few years, Jordano's diversified into a distributing conglomerate including food and beverage distributors, a kitchen supply business and an institutional foods distributor, with combined sales of over $100 million.