PENN TRAFFIC CO

PENN TRAFFIC

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1913 - Quality Markets is founded in Jamestown, PA.
1930's - Homer Reitz founded Riverside Markets as a small credit and delivery grocery in Brookville, PA.
            The company opened its Riverside supermarket following World War II.
1934 - Big Bear Stores Company is founded in Ohio as the first self-service supermarket in the Midwest.
1941 - A group of Grange League Foundation (a farmer marketing cooperative based in Utica, NY) associates launched a
           separate marketing corporation named P & C Cooperative Markets.
1942 - P & C opened its first supermarket in Batavia, NY.
1943 - P & C acquires the 5-store NY based Commander Foods chain.
1954 - Big Bear acquires Hart's Stores, a department store company which was operating in the basements of two
          Big Bear supermarkets.
1962 - Riverside Markets is acquired by Penn Traffic Company.
1962 - The company began opening Riverside Markets/Penn Traffic Co. department stores combination stores.
1970 - P & C Foods is acquired by Pneumo Dynamics Corp., an aerospace company.
1972 - P & C Foods acquired a 24 store New England based supermarket chain.
1974 - Penn Traffic launched its Bi-Lo format discount supermarket banner with the opening of 5 Bi-Lo supermarkets in the
          Youngstown area.
1976 - Big Bear becomes a privately-traded company with 6 company executives purchase the company in a leveraged
          buyout.
1979 - Penn Traffic Co. acquired Quality Markets.
1981 - Penn Traffic Co. sells its department store division.
1984 - 19 unprofitable Riverside Markets are sold of which 17 are reopened under independent ownership using the Riverside
          Markets name.
1985 - P & C managers purchase P & C Foods in a leveraged buyout.
1986 - P & C Foods became a publicly traded company.
1988 - Penn Traffic Co. acquired P & C Foods. Big Bear launches its Big Bear Plus (Big Bear and Hart's combination stores)
          hyperstores in Wintersville, OH.
1989 - Penn Traffic Co. acquired Ohio-based Big Bear Stores Company in a hostile takeover.
1991 - Big Bear operates 29 Harts department stores in OH and WV.
1993 - Penn Traffic Co acquired 15 Bell Markets in the Buffalo, NY area and operates them as Quality Markets.
2002 - P & C launched its P & C Fresh Market format in Fayetteville, NY.
2004 - Penn Traffic Co. files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection. All 70 Big Bear Stores and Big Bear Plus stores are
          sold to other companies including Giant Eagle.
2006 - The Riverside division operates 42 company owned Bi-Lo stores and services 20 independently owned Bi-Lo and
          Riverside Markets.
          Penn Traffic Co. also operates 30 Quality Markets in PA and NY and 62 P& C Food stores in NY, PA, NH and VT.

P&C Foods also services the NY-based Big M Markets chain of independently owned stores.