Store Models & Interiors

     On this tab you will find just about everything you'd want to know about Albertsons Florida store models and their interiors. As a bonus, I'm also including information on Publix and Winn-Dixie store models and interiors here. I talk about both of those stores enough here on the blog and on my flickr page often enough, so why not include some information on both of them too! Anyway, here we go:

Albertsons Florida Store Models:

     During their time in Florida, Albertsons had a few different store models. In this section I'll explain the most common ones and give some information on each of them, including time periods when they were built and a quick description of distinctive features. All of the names I'm giving these store models are ones I made up and did not come from Albertsons. Just to note: These models are for Albertsons Florida specifically. While in other parts of the country most Albertsons stores looked fairly similar or almost exactly like the ones described here, sometimes there were variations used in other regions that aren't mentioned here.  

The Skaggs Model:

Albertsons #4301 Clearwater, a typical Skaggs Model store. All of the following bird's eye satellite images are from Bing Maps.

This was the first store model that Albertsons built across Florida, back when they were still partnered with the Skaggs Company - therefore the name "Skaggs Model". These stores were based off of Skaggs and Albertsons original superstore concept. After the two companies split up in 1978, Albertsons continued to build stores that looked like this into the early 1980's. For the most part, stores #4301 through #4346 were of this style, but Albertsons gave some of these stores extensive remodels in the 90's, somewhat disguising them at first sight. Some distinctive features of the Skaggs Model are the 2 walls in the front corners of the store that stick out a little (however in some later versions of the Skaggs Model, these were removed), and a rectangular entryway that sticks out of the middle. The liquor store is usually tucked into one of the front corners of the building with a secondary entrance along the side wall.

The Trapezoid Model:

Former Albertsons #4354 Bradenton, a typical Trapezoid Model store.

After the Skaggs Model died out, next came the Trapezoid Model, named after the trapezoid shaped area of the building over the entryway. That area is this model's most distinctive feature. The liquor store is still a part of the main building in one of the front corners, but the entrance has been moved from the side of the building to the front. These were built during a few years in the mid-80's, and were stores #4347-#4358. I've seen a few people online say that these Trapezoid Model stores are former Family Mart stores, but they weren't. The only Albertsons in a former Family Mart that I have confirmed is store #4381 in Tamarac. Albertsons tried to buy 18 Family Mart stores when A&P pulled out of Florida in the late 1980s, but that deal fell through. Below is a confirmed former Family Mart store in North Fort Myers:

The Family Mart above was one of the ones that Kash 'n' Karry purchased when Family Mart pulled out of Florida, and has been closed for years. While these two stores have many similarities, there are a few differences between them. The trapezoid area over the entryway on the Family Mart has a wall that extends back into the roof. The Albertsons doesn't. You can't tell from these pictures, but the entrance of the Albertsons is on an angle, following the roofline of the trapezoid on both sides. The Family Mart's entrance is not on a diagonal. Also, the Albertsons originally had an entirely stone front. The Family Mart had 2 stone bands that wrapped around the whole store (the two brown stripes in the picture above). Just some handy information to know to help identify the two and know what makes each different.

The Superstore Model:

Former Albertsons #4376 Winter Springs

As we get to the late 80's and early 90's, Albertsons began to build much bigger and more intimidating looking stores in Florida. These are the Superstore Model stores, named after what many newspaper articles referred to Albertsons stores of this time as. The exteriors of these stores varied in shape, size, and materials. For example, you can see a grand, rectangular brick exterior style on the store above, but a more graceful look of stucco and arches on the store below.

Former Albertsons #4410 Kissimmee

For this model, there were two entrances, one usually labeled ‘Food’ and the other ‘Pharmacy’. These stores were big, but lacked much of the merchandise variety found in Albertsons stores of past eras. By this time period, Albertsons was transitioning away from many general merchandise categories to become more like a traditional grocery store. Also for this model, the liquor store was no longer a part of the main building. The liquor store was now moved into its own smaller building attached to either the right or left of the store. If there was not enough room next to the building, the liquor store was moved out into the parking lot somewhere. The superstores were stores #4359-4389 (with a few exceptions of takeover stores and numbering violations) and #4410 and #4412.

The Jewel-Osco Model:

Former Albertsons #4401 Clearwater

In 1992, Albertsons bought 7 Jewel-Osco stores and 2 planned sites from their parent company American Stores. These Jewel-Osco/Albertsons stores had a distinctive trapezoid shaped area on the roof of each store. There were also 2 very distinct arches over the entryways, like the ones above. The liquor store was tucked into one of the front corners of the building. The first Jewel-Osco in Florida, which is now Albertsons #4402, has slightly modified arches over the entrances and only half the trapezoid on the roof. These Jewel-Osco takeover stores were stores #4401-#4409.

The Circle Model:

Former Albertsons #4411 Kissimmee.

In 1993, the one and only Albertsons Circle Model store opened in Kissimmee, store #4411. This store looks different from any other Albertsons built in the state, and I have confirmed this store was built from scratch as an Albertsons. This store has always intrigued me due to its unique design, which is the large circular-shaped entryway. This may have just been a modified Mid-Late 90's Model design (see below for more on that model), but they were always square looking, except some of the later stores from that era. This store had a single entrance and exit under the circular area. If you know of any other Albertsons stores built like this outside of Florida, please tell me.

The Mid-Late 90's Model:

Former Albertsons #4429 Melbourne

These stores were built in the mid-late 90's (hence the name) and consolidated the two entrances and exits from the Superstore era into one. Their exteriors were usually rectangular shaped, like the one above, but some of the later stores of this style used arches. Some of the later Mid-Late 90's stores had a windowed-in cart storage area before the main entrance doors as you would walk in, like the store above (it's to the left of the main arch). These stores were #4413-late 4430s (there was a transition period around 1996-1997 where the Mid-Late 90's stores and the Early 2000's Model stores looked like hybrids of each other).       

The Early 2000's Model:

A typical Early 2000's Model store, Former Albertsons #4471 Sanford

Now that we're in the late 90's and early 2000's, we come to the Early 2000's Model stores. Even though this design is most closely associated with stores built after 2000, the first stores of this style actually began opening in the very late 1990's. These stores typically had a large arched entryway, but sometimes it was rectangular. The entrance was located under the main arch, and the exit was located off to one of the sides under the smaller awning. There is a variation of this model, which you can see below:

Early 2000's Model Variation, Former Albertsons #4465 Sarasota. The entryway arch was slightly smaller and 'Albertsons' was off to the side.

These stores were built during Albertsons last big push to make something out of the Florida division. They were stores from the late 4430's-#4486.

The Modified Early 2000's Model:

Former Albertsons #4495, Orlando

The Modified Early 2000's Model marks the end of Albertsons time in Florida. 5 of the last 6 Albertsons stores in Florida were of this style, and were built from 2003-2004. What makes these stores different from the standard Early 2000's Model? The only difference is that the Pharmacy department now has its own entrance off to the side (the arch all the way to the left in the picture above). Otherwise, these stores look just like a typical Early 2000's Model store from the exterior. The interiors also included a slightly different layout, and were much larger than a standard Early 2000's store. These were stores #4495-#4498 (except #4496, which took over an existing building), #4316(2) and #4384. 

Albertsons Florida Interior Decor:

Now that we've taken a look at the different building designs that Albertsons used in Florida during their 42 years in the Sunshine State, let's take a quick look at what these stores looked like on the inside:

70's Stripes:
    

A somewhat grainy view of the 70's Stripes interior in the South Orange Ave. Albertsons in Orlando (#4323). Photo Courtesy of Youtube.com. Watch the full video featuring this store here.

     70's Stripes was the original Skaggs-Albertsons interior used from when Albertsons first entered Florida in 1974 through the early 1980's. This interior was very colorful, with many red and orange stripes and color schemes throughout the store. It's hard to find photos of this interior, especially consider that it was removed from just about all operational Albertsons stores by the early 1990s. All I've ever seen of this interior was small bits and pieces of it in the background of photos, much like the photo above. All of the Skaggs and Trapezoid Model Albertsons stores would have originally had this interior.

Colorful Transition Market:

     As Albertsons was transitioning away from the 70's Stripes interior, it seems like they were experimenting with a new interior in the early-mid 1980's. The Colorful Transition interior, which was dug up and named by AFB contributor Ian W., appears to be a colorful variant of the more widely seen Blue and Gray Market decor of the late 1980's and early 1990s. Since this interior had been wiped away from most stores by the 1990's, photos of this interior are hard to come by as well. I'm not sure how widely used this Colorful Transition interior was, but I've seen a old few photos with bits and pieces of colorful walls, hinting at an interior similar to this being used.

Blue & Gray Market:

     The Blue & Gray Market interior was the oldest surviving interior when Albertsons started to pull out of Florida in the late 2000's. This interior came out in the late 80's and was used all the way into the late 90's. It featured white walls with a gray textured stripe running around the perimeter of the store, much like what can be seen in the last photo showcasing this interior above. On the stripe were the department names spelled out in blue letters. As time progressed and Albertsons wanted to freshen up their stores, many times this decor was repainted in a new color scheme to "refresh" the look. The second to last photo in the block above shows a 2000's refresh to this interior at Albertsons #4301 in Clearwater, repainting it to a green and yellow color scheme. I've also seen brown and white repaints to this interior. Blue and Gray Market was an extremely common interior for Albertsons stores in Florida, and was the oldest surviving interior in Albertsons stores as their time in Florida came to an end.

***NOTE BEFORE WE CONTINUE: The Acme Style Blog has an entire decor directory for each of the following Albertsons interiors, which have also been used in Acme stores since they were acquired by Albertsons in 1999 and are exactly the same as the ones used in Albertsons Florida stores. Acme Style's posts are more extensive photographically, and describe these decor packages better than I probably could. For that reason, I'll include a link to each of Acme Style's decor directories at the end of each of my examples.***

Blue & Green Awnings:

     After over a decade of the Blue & Gray Market interior, Albertsons decided it was finally time for a change. That change brought along with it the Blue & Green Awnings interior (most of the interior decor names from here to Brown Lifestyle are the creation of the Acme Style Blog). Albertsons stuck with the Blue & Gray Market interior for almost a decade, but from here on they kept switching decor packages every 2-3 years. Blue and Green Awnings made its debut around 1997. Before Acme Style came out with the Blue & Green Awnings name (the name came from some of the wall decorations used throughout this interior), I used to call this look the 'Pillow' interior because the design used on the walls looked like pillows to me. However, I think Blue & Green Awnings is a much better name than "The Pillow Interior"! Anyway, the first photo in this section came from the Largo Albertsons prior to its conversion into a Safeway store, and was taken by AFB contributor Ross T. That photo covers most of the highlights from this interior as to what the walls, props, and department signage looked like. There were lots of little details on the walls in this decor, and lots of Pastels! The second photo shows the typical aisle signage seen in this decor, as we saw at the Altamonte Springs Albertsons during its remodel into Safeway in late 2015.

    To see Acme Style's Decor post on the Blue & Green Awnings interior, click here. Acme Style calls this a "rare decor". For Acme stores it was fairly uncommon, but for Albertsons Florida, this decor was fairly widespread and used in many stores across the state, especially in remodels of older stores.

Grocery Palace (aka Acme Theme Park):

     Grocery Palace is one of those decor packages that really needs to be described in photos rather than words. This decor, introduced by Albertsons in 1999, is a great example of excess and overboard. However, that excess and overboard, as well as the crazy props used in the different departments, is really what gave this decor its charm. Grocery Palace is my favorite supermarket decor package, mostly because of all of that excess I just mentioned! 

     In 1999, Albertsons debuted an all new interior decor they considered revolutionary, entirely replacing the Blue and Green Awnings interior by 2000.This new decor gave each department its own unique feel with huge, specially designed props and signs to make each department feel unique, like a barn used to store milk (seen above), a giant bowl of chips and pretzels over "Snack Central", and a giant spinning mobile of cats, dogs, and birds over the Pet Care department (among others crazy things - the stores built from the ground up with this look were much more over the top than the stores that were remodeled to this look). This was the Grocery Palace interior. Grocery Palace was Albertsons' official name for this decor package, although Acme Style gave this interior the name "Acme Theme Park" because of it's over the top feel and carnival like styling.

     To see Acme Style's Decor post on the Grocery Palace interior, click here. For a fun look at a perfectly preserved example of an Albertsons Florida store with the Grocery Palace interior, check out my tour of Albertsons #4462 in South Orlando here. I highly recommend scrolling through those two links to understand the craziness that was the Grocery Palace decor!

Industrial Circus:

     Albertsons used the Grocery Palace interior throughout Florida for new and remodeled stores from 1999 until 2002-ish, when the next interior decor came out. That new interior was Industrial Circus. Industrial Circus did away with all of the fun, unique, and quite excessive decor elements we saw in the Grocery Palace interior for a more "traditional" looking supermarket decor. The main element of the Industrial Circus interior was the metallic or metallic-styled department signs. Also, each department was painted bright, fun colors. I guess corrugated metal was the big trend in supermarket decor in the early 2000's, because the introduction of Albertsons's Industrial Circus interior coincided with the introduction of Publix's Metallic Marketplace interior.

     I have a few photos above of some Industrial Circus decor remnants that I found in my travels to two different Albertsons stores in Florida. Most Industrial Circus decor stores in Florida had the "cheap" version of this interior with the flat signs. However, there was also a more deluxe variant to this decor which can be seen in the last photo of the block above, and in Acme Style's decor directory, saved for more extensive remodels and new stores. To see Acme Style's Decor post on the Industrial Circus interior, click here.

Santa Fe (aka Albertsons Marketplace):

     Santa Fe was the last of Albertsons' interiors to make it to Florida. Very few stores in Florida got this look, which came out around 2003. The only stores I know to have gotten this interior were the new Modified Plaza Model stores built from 2003 and 2004, right before Albertsons began their great Florida exodus. This decor, which originated from the Jewel-Osco division, featured the popular 2000's earth tones color scheme that the more upscale stores like Whole Foods and Publix pioneered. While Albertsons used this decor until 2006, this decor was only used in Florida at the very beginning of this decor's life cycle.

     To see Acme Style's Decor post on the Albertsons Marketplace interior, click here. There are much better photos there than the through-the-window ones I took of this decor at the old Apopka Albertsons (#4498).

Brown Lifestyle:

     As Albertsons Florida began its transition into Safeway in Early 2016, the company debuted its latest interior design at these Florida locations. While a rather simplistic interior design, Brown Lifestyle incorporates the latest trend in supermarket design: minimalism and large, skinny letters to spell out the department names. In the photos above from the Altamonte Springs Safeway. In the photos above, you can see the brown/gray/white color scheme used throughout the store. While relatively simple, this interior does look nice at the three Florida Safeway stores. Another aspect of this new interior is local flare, with references to the city the store is located in throughout the building (such as street names on the aisle signs, and a local reference in the name of the cafe seating area). For some additional pictures of this interior, please click here.

Publix Store Models:

Art Deco:

A former Art Deco Publix in Lakeland, FL

     The art deco style Publix stores were Publix's first widespread store model as they began to expand across the state, with this store model introduced in the 1940's. These stores are extremely tiny compared to today's monster 50,000+ square foot supermarkets, however they were a bold architectural statement when they first came out. These stores had that distinct, movie theater style front with rounded edges. The Publix sign ran down that vertical piece over the main entrance to the store, with glass block accents to either side of the sign. Despite being so old, many of these art deco style Publix stores remain throughout Florida in almost perfect condition, although all of them have been re-purposed for other businesses. This is what one of these stores would have looked like when open as Publix.

Wing Store:

An amazingly well preserved original Publix Wing Store in Miami Beach, FL.

     By the time the mid-50's were rolling in, Publix was in need of a new, more modern, store design. With that came the Publix Wing Store, named after the distinct wing-like piece in the middle of each store's exterior. The Wing Model and the Art Deco Model are Publix's most famous store models, and are what many people think of when the here the name Publix. The store pictured above is the last surviving original Wing Store in the entire chain, although in recent years Publix has built some similar replicas of what many consider to be their most unique and timeless design, which lasted into the 1970's. Also, it was during the time of the Wing Store when Publix introduced their famous Tile Murals to the front of each store (more on those soon).

70's Model:

A now demolished former Publix store in Temple Terrace, FL.

A repurposed but very well preserved (exterior-wise) 1970's style Publix store in Kissimmee, FL

     As the Wing Store began to fade away, Publix started to get a little more bland with their store design (although the 70's stores still look neat in their original form). The above photos show examples of a typical 70's Model Publix, with it's most distinct feature being that ribbed panels along the exterior. These stores did not have a glass entry vestibule like their later counterparts, with the entrance angled in along the front walkway.

80's Model:

A fairly standard 80's model Publix Store in Cocoa Beach, FL (now demolished).

Two more examples of 80's stores with varying architectural elements. The first store (with the blue awning) was in Melbourne, FL (now demolished) and the second store is in Sebastian, FL. 

An exterior close-up of a very well preserved (but sadly now closed) 80's built Publix in Lake Placid, FL, with the commonly added on glass vestibule that so many of these stores later received by the end of the decade.

     The 80's Model stores are when Publix stores got pretty average architecturally, although every once and a while from here on Publix has been known to build a store with a fancy, custom designed facade. These stores were rather similar to their 70's counterparts, although the glass vestibule you see in the photo of the Lake Placid store would later become a standard design for these stores. This was a single vestibule, unlike at the early 90's built Publix stores where there were two separate ones.

Early 90's Model:

Two examples of early 90's stores, just with slightly different architecture. The top store is in Sarasota, FL and the bottom store is in New Port Richey, FL. 

A close-up of an early 90's built Publix in Melbourne, FL

     The early 90's model Publix was essentially just a larger version of the 80's Model store, with practically the same interior layout. The only real difference between the 80's Model and the Early 90's model stores was the entryway setup. There were still entrances on each side of the store, but they were now separated by the Customer Service counter and offices which were located on a second floor (similar to the entryways of an Albertsons Superstore Model store) instead of both entrances leading to one opening. 

Late 90's Model:

A typical Late 90's model Publix that was located in Kissimmee, FL.

A close-up of the same Publix that can be seen above, but after that store relocated across the street to a new building.

     The Late 90's model stores saw the double entryways condensed into one located in the center of the store. This store model was also the first to use incorporate a warehouse ceiling, although some older locations built during this era had full or partial drop ceilings inside. Once of the most interesting features of these early 90's built stores is the large skylight/clerestory over the front end. Not all of these stores got that feature, but it sure looks neat in the ones that did!

Early 2000's Model:

A somewhat average Early 2000's Publix in North Lauderdale, FL.

A close-up of another early 2000's built Publix in West Melbourne, FL

     The early 2000's stores look quite similar to the late 90's stores, except the entryway was designed just a little bit different. You can see the new set-up in the photo of the West Melbourne store above. These stores have the frozen food department located on the far left side of the building, the pharmacy counter next to the main entrance, and meat and seafood in the back left corner.

The Current Publix Store Model:

A standard style Modern Publix in Cape Canaveral, FL.

Another example of a typical Modern Publix store, this one located in Titusville, FL.

     The design of stores you see above is basically the default model that Publix uses when they build a new store these days. You do see Publix change up this design to match a shopping center or better fit a community, but it's still pretty obvious when you see one of those stores that it's a modern Publix. This store model was first introduced in 2004 along with the first iteration of the Classy Market interior, and unlike the interior decor, you can still find stores that look like this being built today.

Small Format:

A fairly average Small Format Publix, located in Boynton Beach, FL.

     The small format model Publix is a separate model Publix uses along with whatever regular current model they're using. I believe the first of these small format Publix stores were introduced in the late 90's as a way for Publix to enter markets where a larger sized store of 45,000-55,000 sqft. wouldn't be practical or where there wouldn't be enough room (such as in highly urbanized places like downtowns or in small neighborhoods). These stores still have all of the regular departments as a full sized store, but they just offer a smaller selection in approx. 28,000-30,000 sqft. The entryway is located at the left or right corner of the building, which takes you into a small vestibule that leads you into the rest of the store. The bakery and deli counters are made a part of aisle 1, with meat, seafood, and produce located in the back of the building.

Publix Interior Decor:

     Publix is one of those chains that likes to keep their stores up to date. Because of that, the only surviving Publix interiors at this time are Classy Market 2.0 and later, although Classy Market 2.0 is pretty close to extinction itself (and that decor only came out around 2009!). 

Wavy Pastel:

     Wavy Pastel was Publix's interior through much of the 1990's. All of the department signs were plastic rectangles in Pastel colors, except the bottom of the signs were wavy and highlighted by another color (as can be seen in the photos above). The original aisle markers were rectangles with an inverted triangle in the middle for the number (an example of which can be seen in the bottom photo if you zoom in and look really close). The font you see on the department signs was the Publix font during this era, used on everything from the signs in the stores, to Publix's store brand packaging, to their advertisements. I personally miss this era of Publix, as this was the era where they weren't trying so hard to be the upscale, classy place to shop.

     Photos of the Wavy Pastel interior are a bit hard to come by on the internet, but you can see some more glimpses of this interior in the posts here and here, as well as these six photos from Brand New Eye's flickr photostream.

Metallic Marketplace:

A glimpse of the Metallic Marketplace interior from a Publix Commercial from the early 2000s. Photo courtesy of Youtube.com. You can watch the full commercial here. Link to video sent in by Osi Florida. 

The Metallic Marketplace aisle signs, as seen in a store with the Wavy Pastel interior (a common update for these Wavy Pastel stores in their later years).

     By the early 2000's, Wavy Pastel was starting to look a bit dated, so Publix upgraded their look to match the popular early 2000's supermarket interior trend of using corrugated metal practically anywhere and everywhere it could be placed. Thus, Metallic Marketplace was born. Metallic Marketplace, like its cousin Wavy Pastel, is also dead. Metallic Marketplace was basically just a modernized version of Wavy Pastel, except all of the department signage was placed on giant sheets of corrugated metal, using the same fonts and logos from Wavy Pastel. However, the aisle markers were changed for Metallic Marketplace to the same style as the ones Publix used in the first few iterations of the Classy Market look (however the Metallic Marketplace aisle markers were blue with green accents, as seen in the photo above, instead of pale green with yellow accents from Classy Market 1.0, 2.0, and 2.5). The store also would have a piece (I don't know what to call it, but it almost looked like a small floating wall with little rooflines here and there - it's what the 'Meats' sign is hanging from in the above photo) that ran the perimeter of the grocery aisles, and it was trimmed with corrugated metal. When stores were upgraded from Metallic Marketplace to Classy Market, this piece was sometimes left in place and just repainted to match the Classy Market interior, leaving it as the only remnant of the store's past interior. However, most later remodels would see this piece removed entirely. Metallic Marketplace was only used in newly built stores during the early 2000's. 

Classy Market 1.0:

 

 

     Around 2004, Publix decided to completely upgrade their image from fun fonts and colors to a more sophisticated, classy, earth tones feel. Here came the first iteration of what I call the Classy Market interior, which shared absolutely no similarities with any previous interiors (except a different colored version of Metallic Marketplace's aisle markers). Above you can see a few photos of what the Classy Market 1.0 interior looked like. This interior did a lot to shape and solidify Publix's image as an upscale, classy place to shop (hence the name, Classy Market). One of the main differences between Classy Market 1.0 and its later successors is the font used on the department signage. Classy Market 1.0 used a distinctive, thin, formal looking serif font. This font would later be killed off in Classy Market 2.0 for the font we see today. I'm 99.9% certain this interior is dead, with some of the last traces of it wiped away in Publix rampant remodel sweep around 2014 and 2015.

Classy Market 2.0:

     In the late 2000's Publix, who's always on top of keeping their stores looking good and up to date, decided it was time to refresh Classy Market. Welcome second iteration of Classy Market, which made its debut around 2009 or so. The main difference between Classy Market 1.0 to Classy Market 2.0 was the change in font from the formal serif style to a more modern and bold sans-serif style (which you can see in the photos above). Classy Market 2.0 also a bit more color to the walls, as well as and some hanging props and custom designed signage for each department (such as the sign for the Deli was made to look like the Publix paper drink cups and the sign for produce having a leaf in it). Really, the Classy Market 2.0 brought back a little more fun to the Classy Market interior, as Classy Market 1.0 was quite bland. The best part of the Classy Market 2.0 interior was the historic photo collage of old Publix stores and memorabilia, which, unfortunately, didn't make the cut for the Classy Market 3.0.

Classy Market 2.5:

     Classy Market 2.5 was an interior decor rolled out by Publix around 2011, and used until 2013. The reason this decor is called "Classy Market 2.5" is that this decor is sort of a hybrid of Classy Market 2.0 and 3.0. Classy Market 2.5 used the same aisle markers as Classy Market 2.0, as well as featured the same colors on the wall and the historic photo collage. However, much of the department signage looked like what would be seen in Classy Market 3.0 (as well as some departments getting the curved ceilings from Classy Market 3.0), but with some departments (like seafood) retaining Classy Market 2.0 style signage. The distinctive factor from Classy Market 2.5 is that the department signs are mounted to what looks like a wooden crate like piece, like can be seen in the first photo above.

Classy Market 3.0:

     Classy Market 3.0 is Publix's current interior decor package. Classy Market 3.0 made its official debut at a few prototype Publix stores in 2012, although this decor wasn't rolled out as a remodel package until 2013. Since the debut of Classy Market 3.0 and the rampant wave of remodeling that came with it, this is the most common decor package you will find at Publix these days. There are still a good number of stores with the Classy Market 2.5 decor out there, although I have seen some of those stores begin remodels recently. Classy Market 2.0 is still out there in a few stores, but it has become quite rare over the last year or so. Anyway, Classy Market 3.0 features lots of splashes of color among what is usually a brown or beige store. Circular shaped hanging signage can be found in a few departments as well. For Classy Market 3.0, the aisle markers were changed for the first time since the days of Metallic Marketplace. Above you can see some examples of the distinctive features of the Classy Market interior.

Evergreen:

More coming soon!

     Just as an addition to all of this Publix decor information, there's a really cool set of photos on shawnson's flickr photostream of a closing Publix in Tallahassee from 2004, which still had a very old interior when it closed (I think it's a mix of original 70's interior with some areas remodeled to an 80's interior). It's a very fascinating photoset, which you can view by clicking here!

Winn-Dixie Store Models:

70's/80's Model:

A practically untouched (exteriorwise) 70's Winn-Dixie store in Mobile, AL, which was closed in 2011.

     The oldest of Winn-Dixie's remaining stores (that haven't been completely altered in some way) are these 70's and 80's Model stores. These stores are rather distinctive with their awning like design on the exterior, and you can spot numerous former Winn-Dixie stores that look exactly like this throughout the Southeast. In addition to former stores, it's still pretty amazing the number of these stores that are left out there in practically original 70's condition exterior-wise, and still open as Winn-Dixie. This was one of Winn-Dixie's most prevalent store designs, as it was used during the peak of their expansion and strength as a company. In the 1990's, many of these older Winn-Dixie locations were abandoned for new Marketplace stores nearby. The entryway of these stores were typically located on one of the sides of a glass vestibule (although some stores had entrances on both sides, although one side was the most common). This vestibule usually contained a set of emergency exit doors along the front of the vestibule as well near the main entry doors. There are some variations to Winn-Dixie stores from this era, but for the most part the general look you see above can still be found.

1st Generation Marketplace:

A typical 1st Generation Marketplace store located in Jupiter, FL (which closed in April 2018) 

     The late 80's was when Winn-Dixie introduced their famous Marketplace store format and interior. With the introduction of the new concept Marketplace stores, a new store design was also introduced to different these new, larger stores from their predecessors. The end result of that redesign is what you see in the image above. This design would end up being the first of three designs used for Winn-Dixie's Marketplace era stores, which stretched from the late 80's to the early 2000's. These 1st Generation Marketplace stores are easily identified by that slanted part to the left side of the building.

2nd Generation Marketplace:

A typical early 90's 2nd Generation Marketplace Store that was located in Albany, GA, which closed in 2013.

     By the early 1990's, the original Marketplace design was retired in favor of the design you see above. The 2nd Generation Marketplace store design was probably the most prevalent of Winn-Dixie's three Marketplace store designs, used during the peak of the Marketplace era expansions in the mid-1990's. This store model was used from the early 90's and into the late 90's. The most distinct feature of the 2nd Generation Marketplace stores are that triangle shaped piece over the entryway. And instead of having a side facing entrance, the entrances to the last two Marketplace era stores were centrally located in a small indentation on the front of the building.

3rd Generation Marketplace:

A typical 3rd Generation Marketplace store in West Palm Beach, FL.

     In the late 90's, the Marketplace model got one last refresh before finally getting retired. The exteriors of these 3rd Generation Marketplace stores had a trapezoidal awning over the entryway (if viewed from above). Other than the redesigned facade, much of the interiors of these store were like their predecessor. However, by the time the 3rd Generation Marketplace model was rolled out, some of these stores received expanded fresh departments. The stores with the expanded fresh offerings have an island on the right side of the building where the deli and bakery are located. While much of the expanded features have since been taken away at these stores, the island is an indication that a Winn-Dixie was originally a "deluxe Marketplace" store at one time. The entryway of these stores was practically identical to that of the 2nd Generation Marketplace stores, an example of which can be seen below. This store model lasted from the end of the 1990's (about 1997-ish) until 2000.

Early 2000's Model:

A typical Early 2000's store located in Riviera Beach, FL. This store opened in July 2004 as one of the last new Winn-Dixies to open before the bankruptcy, and closed in 2014.

     In the early 2000's, Winn-Dixie started to fall on financial troubles. They opened a few new stores between 2000 and 2005, when the bankruptcy essentially stopped Winn-Dixie's opening of new locations. Those few new stores that they opened in the early 2000's from the retirement of the Marketplace stores until the bankruptcy in 2005 looked like the store pictured above. These stores (like the one above) are fairly rare, and had a rectangular archway located over the entrance. These stores usually had an attached liquor store too. The first time I saw one of these Early 2000's Winn-Dixie stores, I thought it was a former Albertsons! They look so much like an early 2000's model Albertsons, but with a rectangular entryway! For a close look at one of these stores, you can check out my post on the Port Salerno Winn-Dixie here.  

The Transformational Winn-Dixie:

     After Winn-Dixie had emerged from bankruptcy, they began to remodel and re-image themselves, focusing mostly on existing stores. In 2010, Winn-Dixie built their first store from scratch since before the bankruptcy, and that began the era of the Transformational model. (Just as a side note, Winn-Dixie opened one new store prior to the opening of the first official "Transformational" store after emerging from bankruptcy. That store opened in 2009 in Margate, FL, however it took over a former Publix building and looks nothing like this on the exterior). Winn-Dixie remodeled many older stores to the Transformational look (which is what happened with the store in the second photo, and why its exterior isn't as grandiose as that of the stock image from Winn-Dixie's website above it). There were 3 or so stores built from scratch with this look, all in Louisiana as far as I can tell. Since Winn-Dixie isn't really opening new stores anymore, they really don't have a current store design since the last Transformational store opened around 2012. The two "new" locations they opened since, a store in 2015 in Miramar Beach, FL and a store on Baymeadows Road in Jacksonville in 2016, took over existing buildings and don't have any distinct features. The Miramar Beach store opened in an existing building behind the original Winn-Dixie, and the Baymeadows store was a former Winn-Dixie brought back to life, and kept its previous look.


Winn-Dixie Interior Decor:

Marketplace: 

 

 

 

 

     To the best of my knowledge, Marketplace is the oldest Winn-Dixie decor package still remaining in their stores (however plenty of remnants from prior packages can be found in some of the older Winn-Dixies still floating around out there). The most famous version of the Marketplace interior, pictured above, was introduced in the early-mid 1990's (replacing the original 80's chrome and neon Marketplace interior). With the 1990's version of the Marketplace interior, pastels were a huge part of the color scheme (as can be seen in the first three photos above). This interior primarily used pink, green, and white in its earlier iterations, although Winn-Dixie toned down the pastels by the late 1990's. By that time, the Marketplace interior evolved into more of a cream, white, and teal color palate, which made newer Marketplace stores feel less dated than their overly pink pastel brethren. For a decor package that's around 25 years old now, this interior is still quite common throughout Winn-Dixie's remaining stores.

     The Marketplace era was also when the America's Supermarket slogan came out, which can still be found on the walls in stores with the Marketplace interior. At the rate Winn-Dixie is shrinking, they'll be lucky to claim that they are Florida's Supermarket in the coming years, let alone America's Supermarket!

Purple/Maroon:

     After the end of the Marketplace era in the early 2000's, Winn-Dixie came out with another interior decor to refresh some of their stores that never got a Marketplace remodel. This was the Purple/Maroon interior, named after the general color scheme of the look. 

Some of the typical department signage of the Purple/Maroon Interior. There was always a saying in the blue ribbon that accompanied the department name.

Produce signage.

Remnants of prior decor packages are quite common in older stores that got the Purple/Maroon remodels, like the color tiles seen in the above photo.

Purple/Maroon Aisle Marker. If you look closely at the number, in the background is actually the old Winn-Dixie logo. Many older stores received these aisle signs even if they did not receive any other Purple/Maroon signage.

     There really isn't much else to say about the Purple/Maroon decor. It was primarily a cheap way for Winn-Dixie to remodel older stores with some new signage in the early 2000's, and usually not do much else.

Deluxe Purple/Maroon:

     At the same time the Purple/Maroon decor package was being rolled out, a more deluxe version of it was being used in stores being built from the ground up. Considering how few new stores Winn-Dixie opened in this time period leading into their 2005 bankruptcy, the deluxe Purple/Maroon interior was extremely rare. While using the same basic color scheme as the more common Purple/Maroon interior (as well as aisle signs), Deluxe Purple/Maroon had fancier signage, and more props and signage on the walls (such as the decorative window shutters and murals of palm trees). The Deluxe Purple/Maroon interior is actually quite nice, and still looks somewhat modern. There is only one known store to still have the Deluxe Purple/Maroon interior, and that store is located in Stuart, FL (a full post on that store can be seen here, with more pictures and detail on this rare interior). In addition to that store in Stuart, Winn-Dixie also has a store in Biloxi, MS (which was a former Jitney Jungle store they took over in the early 2000's) that I believe contains a variant of the Deluxe Purple/Maroon interior, but with a more New Orleans-esque type spin to it. The Florida version of this interior, which you can see in the photos above, has more of a "beach house" vibe to it. This makes me wonder if Winn-Dixie was experimenting with elements of local flare in their stores prior to the bankruptcy.

Post-Bankruptcy:

     Once Winn-Dixie emerged from bankruptcy in the late 2000's, they went on a remodeling spree. Winn-Dixie had a bad reputation for having dirty, outdated stores in the early 2000's, and they were out to change that image. After the bankruptcy, Winn-Dixie changed their logo and came out with the 'Getting Better all the Time' campaign. Many old stores got the remodels they deserved, and this is the interior they got. This is a very formal, upscale look that Winn-Dixie came up with, probably to attract customers from Publix. It uses a very formal, all lowercase font and pastel colors, which you can see in the photos above. Another unique feature to these stores were the white square carving-like pieces that were placed around the perimeter of the store. Of the 4 remodeling campaigns that Winn-Dixie had since emerging from their first bankruptcy in 2005 (I have to remember to start phrasing it that way now), the campaign featuring this decor was the most widespread. However, since Winn-Dixie likes to change direction all the time, I have three more decor packages to take about, all of which came out over the span of a decade.

     An example of one of the aisle markers from the post-bankruptcy decor before moving on. 

The Transformational Store:

     I don't know what Winn-Dixie's motive was for retiring the original post-bankruptcy remodeling campaign that started around 2008, but it eventually saw its end around 2011 when "the transformational store" made its debut. While most stores that received the transformational decor also got extensive remodels to Winn-Dixie's latest prototype layout, some stores were not as lucky near the tail end of this decor's life. The transformational interior package uses department signage printed on panels and hung on pastel colored walls. The font also changed from formal to fun, like Publix did between the 1st and 2nd Generations of their Classy Market interior. While the deluxe Transformational remodels were absolutely stunning, they were also very expensive. As the dust from the Winn-Dixie/BI-LO merger settled in 2012 and 2013, Transformational remodels gradually became fewer and cheaper (like in the example I linked to earlier in this paragraph).

Sampling of some Winn-Dixie Transformational decor (sorry for the glare in this photo). This is in the Prepared Foods departments, a main focus of the newly renovated stores from this era.

Instead of just putting the names of the departments on the sign, Winn-Dixie uses the word "freshly" followed by a verb describing the department. The word "freshly" is used to an overkill here. 

Aisle sign

     For a more extensive look at a Transformational Winn-Dixie, you can check out this post I did back in 2015.

The Green Interior:

     By 2014, the short lived era of the Transformational Winn-Dixie was over. A small handful of deluxe remodels have happened since, even as the decor continued to change. Probably my favorite interior decor since Winn-Dixie 2005 bankruptcy was the one you see above, which I call "The Green Interior". While a very simplistic look, Green Interior stores look extremely modern, and even the most bare bones remodels from this era were rather nice. While some departments got their names on the wall, some (like produce in the first photo) only got representative symbols. This look is very classy, and made many older stores look presentable. While green was the primary wall color used in these stores, there were also some beige accents throughout the store. Some stores (mostly ones to get remodeled later in The Green Interior era) had more beige than green on the walls, but otherwise used the same decor elements.

Down Down:

     As nice as the Green Interior was and with all the potential it had, that interior was killed off rather prematurely after only two years in use. In early 2016, with a new CEO guiding Southeastern Grocers, everything about Winn-Dixie changed again. Right around the same time Winn-Dixie's "Down Down" ad campaign debuted, so did this interior, which is how it ended up with the name "Down Down" interior. The Down Down interior, with its (slightly overboard) use of red walls and tall, blocky fonts for the department names, marks the first standardization of an interior across all 4 of Southeastern Grocer's brands. This interior seems to follow every supermarket interior decor trend for the late 2010's: simplistic and plain looks, large, tall fonts, and wood grain accents throughout the store. Remodeled BI-LO stores use this same red version of the "Down Down" interior, while Fresco y Mas and Harvey's stores use a horrifically bright yellow variant. As of right now, this is still the current Winn-Dixie interior, however, that can change at a moment's notice if you look at their recent track record!

Winn Win:

More coming soon!

     Just for fun to wrap up the Winn-Dixie interior decor directory, the Pleasant Family Shopping website has some great photos of Winn-Dixie's interiors from the 60's and 70's, as well as the 80's Neon Marketplace interior I mentioned earlier.