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ShopKo stores-First ShopKo ever?/History

Posted: 23 May 2009 17:49
by crainbebo
When I at Yakima over the Mother's Day Weekend, I stopped at the ShopKo in Union Gap, WA (Valley Mall) and saw that there was still older ShopKo shopping carts from before the early 90s, with theold "ShopKo Saves You Money Everyday" slogan, which was very surprising, because that's the only ShopKo I've ever been in. What is the very FIRST ShopKo store that was opened? The question is: What's the very first ShopKo store that opened? I know there are ShopKo's all over the US, from Yakima, WA to Michigan.

Re: ShopKo stores-First ShopKo ever?/History

Posted: 23 May 2009 20:34
by Andrew T.

Re: ShopKo stores-First ShopKo ever?/History

Posted: 06 Jun 2009 23:35
by Super S
Did Shopko run into financial problems in the late 90s? The reason I ask is that I am under the impression that Shopko at one point planned to expand into Western Washington and Oregon, as there is one store in Lacey, WA south of Tacoma, as well as one in Salem, Oregon. They never built any more stores on this side of the Cascades though. For even a small chain, it seems strange how far apart these stores are not only from one another, but from areas where Shopko has a stronger presence, such as central Washington and central Oregon.

Re: ShopKo stores-First ShopKo ever?/History

Posted: 28 Jan 2010 20:20
by ShopKoFan
Here's an ad for the grand opening of the first ShopKo discount store (and seventh Sure Way grocery store), from the Green Bay Press-Gazette newspaper, April 11th, 1962:

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Re: ShopKo stores-First ShopKo ever?/History

Posted: 31 Jan 2010 14:22
by tkaye
Super S wrote:...there is one store in Lacey, WA south of Tacoma, as well as one in Salem, Oregon.
I wonder if they felt that the large number of government workers in both Salem and Lacey/Olympia made them solid test markets. They're also on the southern fringes of the Portland and Seattle metro areas -- close enough that they would fit in with an expansion plan, but also far enough away that they are still unknown to most people in the region.
Super S wrote:They never built any more stores on this side of the Cascades though.
There is also a store in Eugene. Just over the mountains there is one in Bend. There are only three stores in Oregon.

Even more remote than the Lacey and Oregon stores is the one in Redding, Calif. I can't think of an explanation for that one at all.