Judging by the font, the real Superstore began claiming "Low prices every day" around the early 80s.
Some "whatever happened to..." speculation about Superstore here. (I think we all know what happened. Its initials are W-m.)
Speaking of no trespassing and Bum Town, I was on the ground lining up this shot of feathers found sticking out of the pavement...
...along came a drifter with his wolf-dog, saying, "That's my home!"
We assured him we were just leaving and we hadn't touched anything, and at first I was even nervously trying to explain the shot I was taking of the feathers. But he seemed happy for the company.
He asked us if we'd ever been homeless, turns out it's not that great, he said, and he asked my co-explorer Deanna if she would take him home with her, even though she lives in Maryland.
He got 53 cents out of our visit and gave us a parting gift.
"Don't you need this?" asked Deanna.
"No, I got my Bible," he said cheerily.
Stumble It!
Aww, poor guy. Great pics.
Posted by: Jules | November 10, 2008 at 10:33 AM
I don't think the Superstore/National stores ever recovered from the toll taken by the strike its workers went on either. As I recall it wasn't long after the strike that they all shut down.
Posted by: Gabe | November 10, 2008 at 11:14 AM
wow, I guess bums really do live in Bumtown. Poor guy, I'm sure being homeless does suck.
That guy has same really white teeth though.
Posted by: Elizabeth | November 10, 2008 at 02:08 PM
About two years ago I had the pleasure of going inside the building for the first time since I was a child. It was owned by a local printing company who was leasing it out to Georgia Pacific for storing their paper products.
Posted by: Brad | November 10, 2008 at 04:01 PM
I remember going there as a kid with my mom. All I remember is that you could get health stuff like what they sell at WholeFoods now. I used to LOVE the carrot chips.
Oh yeah, and they had a toy department.
Posted by: Trey | November 10, 2008 at 06:06 PM
If you are reading this Brad I'd love a description of the condition of the inside of the building. Was it completely gutted or does it still resemble a grocery store? For some reason that building has fascinated me for years. It's like a strange 1980's vision of the future.
Posted by: Chris | November 11, 2008 at 12:08 AM
It is kind of haunting in a post-apocalyptic future way.
Great pics.
Posted by: Big Daddy | November 13, 2008 at 04:49 PM
Where is this?
Posted by: Matt | November 13, 2008 at 07:52 PM
I can remember when that place first opened in the early 80's. It was quite a big deal, and I think the facade has held up well considering it's been closed for over 15 years. Looking back, the store was really ahead of its time. Like one of the previous posts said, it was like the Whole Foods of it's day. Lot's of unique and hard to find items. A workers strike put the place out of business around the early 90's. No suprise, it's just across from the Bellmont Hotel in a previous post. Collen, I was wondering when you were going to hit this place!
Posted by: Ryan | November 13, 2008 at 10:19 PM
I can remember when that place first opened in the early 80's. It was quite a big deal, and I think the facade has held up well considering it's been closed for over 15 years. Looking back, the store was really ahead of its time. Like one of the previous posts said, it was like the Whole Foods of it's day. Lot's of unique and hard to find items. A workers strike put the place out of business around the early 90's. No suprise, it's just across from the Bellmont Hotel in a previous post. Collen, I was wondering when you were going to hit this place!
Posted by: Ryan | November 13, 2008 at 10:20 PM
Oh wow, these pictures brought back memories! We had an empty Superstore in Lafayette with that same giant yellow frame road sign for years. I remember going with my parents as a child and getting to put my quarter in the cart to unlock it from the others, then getting the quarter back when we returned the cart. Such an overwhelmingly yellow place. It got demolished to build a stadium movie theater.
Posted by: Caitlin | November 14, 2008 at 06:57 PM
Oh my gawd- I really used to get freaked out in the real superstore ... it was the biggest grocery we had ever seen! In New Olreans the employees were on roller skates and I remember accidently breaking a jar of grape jelly and some guy comes swooping around the corner on rollar skates with a mop to clean it up. The fun ended with a crying kid we heard throughout the whole shopping experience being outside when we left and he threw up right in front of me. I never went back.
lol
Posted by: Leslie @ the oko box | November 15, 2008 at 10:24 AM
Ah, just when I was trying to remember what this big grocery store where my parents used to shop was, I find you have posted about it! I remember going there quite a bit in the mid-80s, but I have vage memories of it. Nothing beyond it being huge, having more stuff grocerywise than one could shake a stick at, and the back where the meat cases were seeming rather industrial and warehouselike (I am positive there were bare concrete floors or white linoleum floors back there). Although now that I think about it, I think there were some sausage cases on the side wall once one went in? I wish I'd paid more attention to the inside of the store back then!
Posted by: The Anonymous Anonymous | November 24, 2008 at 01:06 AM
I used to work at the real Superstore on Harvey, LA. My first job actually, and I think I pretty much worked in every department, or at least alot of them: bagger, cashier, cash room, pricing dept, video store, and was one of those guys on the roller skates.
It really was a super walmart before there were super walmarts. I mean, ours had a video store, eye doctor, hair salon, dentist office, deli, backery, clothing, toys, hardware, and more. And if you thought something rang up wrong, they'd send the skater to verify it. Try that today! yeah right.
Posted by: JamesZ | December 02, 2008 at 10:21 PM
To the person asking where this store was located in Baton Rouge, it was on Greenwell Springs Rd just east of Airline Hwy:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=greenwell+springs+rd,+baton+rouge,+la&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=37.188995,73.828125&ie=UTF8&ll=30.479057,-91.107436&spn=0,359.997747&t=h&z=19&layer=c&cbll=30.478404,-91.107554&panoid=tr-2-b1KlOgxghdAYoXdAg&cbp=12,126.6933817287186,,0,6.214701105963597
Posted by: Austin | February 12, 2009 at 03:07 PM
Wow... I remember it just like it was yesterday. It was laid out pretty much like Super Wal-Mart is today. From the entrance, the deli was to the left, followed by a small assortment of electronics, toys, and OTC medicines. As you walked to the back, you had the pharmacy, then the seafood section, which had live lobster. Across the back was the meat case and deli. Around the side was the bulk foods and florist. In the far right corner of the store was the bakery, which had the best Red Velvet cake around (next to Gambino's) They also gave free chocolate chip cookies to kids. Then you had your grocery section, which had every product you could imagine, a la Sam's Club. Let's not forget the talking cash registers... the grand futuristic touch! Up front was an optometrist, which supplied me with my share of glasses through high school, the video rental store, and liquor/tobacco station. My best friend was actually one of those guys on the roller skates, and we still laugh about it today. Thanks for the memories!!
Posted by: Skoota | March 02, 2009 at 11:24 AM
omg I loved this place!! I remember telling my granny to "use the calculator on the cart"...I was too young to understand the quarter deposit thing. Going there meant getting a toy! So sad that it went out of business...
Posted by: BriM | April 16, 2009 at 10:19 AM
Albertsons, Wal-Mart, and labor strikes were pretty much the death blow for this place and Kroger.
If you want a real blast from the past, there's a used office furniture store at the corner of Antioch and Tiger Bend ... in what must have been an old National Food Store. I walked in there one day and it was scary retro. Straight out of the 70s/80s.
Posted by: JohnN | May 06, 2009 at 01:33 PM
Lafayette's The Real Superstore has a facebook group
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=82686776330&ref=mf
Posted by: David Hamer | May 28, 2009 at 09:15 AM
the store at the corner of antioch and tiger band was a winn dixie... the used furniture store is actually next door and it what was a "howards" discount store...
Posted by: robert stephens | August 25, 2009 at 08:02 PM
Through the earth, and that is love is the treasure!
Posted by: Jordans Sneakers | July 09, 2010 at 08:27 PM
A movie has recently moved in. A lot of employees, police guarding it.
Posted by: Ronnie O | February 15, 2012 at 08:17 PM
Thanks much for posting this. I worked at the Real Superstore during its first summer of operation as a bag boy.
The biggest problem with that business IMO was that the location was horrid. The whole area was already in the early stages of decay (the Bellemont was practically next door for example) and it was part of an ill-conceived effort to "revitalize" North BR. Which as we know failed horribly.
I do remember many nights spent in the parking lot rounding up carts before quitting time at midnight. If memory serves correctly, that first summer of RS operation was the summer of 1986.
Posted by: Jeff | July 24, 2012 at 06:57 PM
I was craveing these Yellow marshmallows snack cakes with chocolate cookie at the bottom and coconut sprinkels on top don't remeber the name only got them there it was in a brown and clear plastic cardboard bottom if anyone remeber please post also took my first picture with santa and remeber my mom let me put the basket up and get the quater while she and my sister got the car started and when I walk back I saw them pulling off they forgot me lol it was two or three min.but the shock thank god they came back
Posted by: angela holden | July 24, 2012 at 09:34 PM
I worked there for a couple of years while I was in college. Some great memories from that place
Posted by: brett | August 27, 2012 at 08:16 PM