A great photo of a 1960s Safeway in Blackfen, in southeast London, sent to me by Nic Ayling. It’s rare to find photos of UK Safeway stores from this era. He also included some interiors (of a different store, I believe) that demonstrate how Safeway was using more or less the same designs on both sides of the Atlantic in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Amazing. That could just as easily be Modesto, California circa 1972.
That pics from the late 1970s judging by the cars in the pic.
Safeway were still using this interior branding well into the ’80s in the UK, especially in stores that weren’t in key locations. (I’m thinking of Eastwood, Essex.) Those were the days! In fact, all supermarkets here were generally tiled floor-to-ceiling in the deli and bakery departments (you don’t see that now). To me, the warm, earthy hues of 70s and 80s interiors were much more relaxing and pleasant than nowadays – especially compared to the harsh lighting and cold shades of Tesco (which to me are quite unnatural). Funny, too, how Safeway were giving out environmentally-sound recycled paper bags back then – as opposed to today’s plastic ones that literally fall apart!
Anyone remember the radio advert that went: “Safe-way… Everything you want from a store and a little bit mo-o-o-ore”?
Wow, a London-area Safeways. Too cool. The outside is not that far removed from today’s UK supermarket design, and the inside shots are pretty much what I remember American supermarkets being like in the ’70s / early ’80s.
Too bad Safeway no longer exists in the UK. One of our local supermarkets used to be a Safeway until 1998 — now it’s a Sainsbury’s. I wish I could remember what the Safeway looked like before it changed hands and got re-modelled, but alas, I didn’t pay attention to supermarkets back then they way I do now.
fab memories i started with safeway as a 20 year old butcher in 1972 –am 60 now, but have to say safeway were -to me the best company to work for, best job ever ,got their pound of flesh, but paid more than anyone else sad wish they were still here but they are in canada–northern ontario and the us of a
My guess, around 1982 for that top photo.
I used to work at Safeway Blackfen! 1987-1990, on the Produce dept. Looked very different then!