The first successful grocery stores in east and southwest Greensboro were the Bi-Rite co-op grocery stores. From Groceteria.com:
"I. Essa had opened his grocery on Gorrell Street in east Greensboro in 1935. Robert Butler had opened his store in working class Glenwood in 1936. In 1955, these two independent grocers, along with C.R. Little and several others joined together in a cooperative venture known as Bi-Rite stores. Their original intent was tow band together in order to pay for newspaper advertising to compete with the large chains. Eventually, the federation engaged in cooperative buying, and the stores all assumed the Bi-Rite name. Butler became president of the new organization.
Bi-Rite reached into many outlying areas of the city, particularly in the southwest and the east, before the chains did, and therefore the co-op was well-positioned when development caught up.
Butler’s store in Glenwood took on the new name in 1955, following a large-scale expansion. New (not rebranded) stores opened on Lawndale Drive (1957) and High Point Road (1959) among others. In addition, the former A&P on Walker Avenue was purchased by one of the co-op members when A&P relocated in 1957.
Bi-Rite very quickly became one of the biggest names in Greensboro grocery retailing, and remained so for two decades...."
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"The Bi-Rite “chain” nearly doubled its store count during the 1960s as well, from eight to fifteen locations in Greensboro.
A branch at 2212 South Ashe Street (now Randleman Road) opened on 2 November 1961, as the twelfth in the co-op, although it seems to have been only the ninth within Greensboro proper. This location was owned by the Maner family. In addition, a Bi-Rite location replaced the three-year-old Piggly Wiggly on Madison (now Friendly) Avenue in 1962; this location had initially been a Colonial store.
A few more stores took on the Bi-Rite name in the late 1960s, although some of them may have been preexisting stores that had operated under other names. One definite newcomer, however, was the Battleground Avenue store, open 30 September 1969. This store was owned by Robert Butler, one of the co-op’s founders..."
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"The Bi-Rite co-op went through major changes in the 1970s. Its Greensboro locations (15) were more numerous than any of its competitors. However, Bi-Rite was not a chain, but a confederation of individual stores. One of them, Robert Butler, had grand expansion plans the others did not all share.
Around 1973, Butler’s stores (and perhaps some of the others) seceded from the co-op and rebranded under the Bestway name. By 1975, there were eight Bestway stores, at least five of them former (or relocated) Bi-Rites. One was the 1947 vintage former A&P location on Walker Avenue. In the same year, there were six Bi-Rite stores, five of them dating from before 1970 and one located in a former Colonial store on Asheboro Street.
By 1980, the co-op had splintered further; many of the remaining Bi-Rite stores had become FoodRite stores. FoodRite had also taken over the vacated A&P store on Battleground Avenue, and had a total of six stores. Bi-Rite had five: three dating from the 1950s, plus two “new” locations, the 1950 vintage A&P at Summit Shopping Center and a small store on Pleasant Garden Road.
Bestway still had eight locations in 1980, but one in a former Piggly Wiggly near Guilford College had closed, and the chain had also taken over A&P’s former space at Golden Gate Center."
So what was Bi-Rite's mistake? Besides splitting up the stores? While the store was a business co-op it wasn't a member owned co-op. The Bi-Rite Co-op was owned by a handful of independent grocers who banded together to compete with the larger chains and did so successfully for many years but eventually the constant barrage of corporate capital available to the larger chains and the lack of customer loyalty caught up with the Bi-Rite Co-op.
I shopped at the Bi-Rite on the corner of Bessemer and English and at the Bi-Rite on Phillips Avenue in years gone by and it wasn't until their stores closed that we completely stopped shopping there even though the Winn-Dixie on Phillips Avenue was closer.
But had the Bi-Rite been a member owned co-op and had I been a member I might have never set foot in the Winn-Dixie. That's why I urge all of Greensboro to join the Renaissance Community Co-op Grocery and help us make history anew.
"I. Essa had opened his grocery on Gorrell Street in east Greensboro in 1935. Robert Butler had opened his store in working class Glenwood in 1936. In 1955, these two independent grocers, along with C.R. Little and several others joined together in a cooperative venture known as Bi-Rite stores. Their original intent was tow band together in order to pay for newspaper advertising to compete with the large chains. Eventually, the federation engaged in cooperative buying, and the stores all assumed the Bi-Rite name. Butler became president of the new organization.
Bi-Rite reached into many outlying areas of the city, particularly in the southwest and the east, before the chains did, and therefore the co-op was well-positioned when development caught up.
Butler’s store in Glenwood took on the new name in 1955, following a large-scale expansion. New (not rebranded) stores opened on Lawndale Drive (1957) and High Point Road (1959) among others. In addition, the former A&P on Walker Avenue was purchased by one of the co-op members when A&P relocated in 1957.
Bi-Rite very quickly became one of the biggest names in Greensboro grocery retailing, and remained so for two decades...."
_____
"The Bi-Rite “chain” nearly doubled its store count during the 1960s as well, from eight to fifteen locations in Greensboro.
A branch at 2212 South Ashe Street (now Randleman Road) opened on 2 November 1961, as the twelfth in the co-op, although it seems to have been only the ninth within Greensboro proper. This location was owned by the Maner family. In addition, a Bi-Rite location replaced the three-year-old Piggly Wiggly on Madison (now Friendly) Avenue in 1962; this location had initially been a Colonial store.
A few more stores took on the Bi-Rite name in the late 1960s, although some of them may have been preexisting stores that had operated under other names. One definite newcomer, however, was the Battleground Avenue store, open 30 September 1969. This store was owned by Robert Butler, one of the co-op’s founders..."
_______
"The Bi-Rite co-op went through major changes in the 1970s. Its Greensboro locations (15) were more numerous than any of its competitors. However, Bi-Rite was not a chain, but a confederation of individual stores. One of them, Robert Butler, had grand expansion plans the others did not all share.
Around 1973, Butler’s stores (and perhaps some of the others) seceded from the co-op and rebranded under the Bestway name. By 1975, there were eight Bestway stores, at least five of them former (or relocated) Bi-Rites. One was the 1947 vintage former A&P location on Walker Avenue. In the same year, there were six Bi-Rite stores, five of them dating from before 1970 and one located in a former Colonial store on Asheboro Street.
By 1980, the co-op had splintered further; many of the remaining Bi-Rite stores had become FoodRite stores. FoodRite had also taken over the vacated A&P store on Battleground Avenue, and had a total of six stores. Bi-Rite had five: three dating from the 1950s, plus two “new” locations, the 1950 vintage A&P at Summit Shopping Center and a small store on Pleasant Garden Road.
Bestway still had eight locations in 1980, but one in a former Piggly Wiggly near Guilford College had closed, and the chain had also taken over A&P’s former space at Golden Gate Center."
So what was Bi-Rite's mistake? Besides splitting up the stores? While the store was a business co-op it wasn't a member owned co-op. The Bi-Rite Co-op was owned by a handful of independent grocers who banded together to compete with the larger chains and did so successfully for many years but eventually the constant barrage of corporate capital available to the larger chains and the lack of customer loyalty caught up with the Bi-Rite Co-op.
I shopped at the Bi-Rite on the corner of Bessemer and English and at the Bi-Rite on Phillips Avenue in years gone by and it wasn't until their stores closed that we completely stopped shopping there even though the Winn-Dixie on Phillips Avenue was closer.
But had the Bi-Rite been a member owned co-op and had I been a member I might have never set foot in the Winn-Dixie. That's why I urge all of Greensboro to join the Renaissance Community Co-op Grocery and help us make history anew.
