Market Basket
Supermarket History
DeMoulas Market Basket, now with all stores known as Market Basket, is a chain of 65
operating supermarkets located in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. It has stores in
central New Hampshire and is expanding in Southeast Massachusetts with plans to complete
new supermarkets in West Bridgewater and Brockton in 2012. Headquartered in Tewksbury,
Massachusetts, Market Basket has annual sales that exceed $3 billion and there are over
12,000 associates employed by the chain.
The beginnings of Market Basket Inc was very inauspicious. In 1917 Greek-American
immigrants Athansios "Arthur" Demoulas and his wife left their factory jobs and opened the
DeMoulas Market in Lowell, Massachusetts. This "mom and pop" grocery store’s specialty
was fresh lamb, processed at a slaughterhouse behind their home. The store was located
in a working-class city and the store managed to survive the Great Depression by allowing
customers to buy on credit during the rough times. When their bank threatened to foreclose
on the family home if a $100 payment was not made; their son, Mike, left school to work at the
store and helped the family raise the $100 payment and the business stayed afloat. After World
War II, the oldest son in the family, George, returned from serving in the Army and also joined
the store.
Arthur and his wife operated the same store for 33 years, until they finally replaced it with a
new building in 1950. This store was then sold to their sons, Mike and George in 1954 and
the brothers expanded the store in 1956. By the end of the 1960s, the brothers had built the
business into a 15-store DeMoulas Supermarket chain. After the death of Arthur, Mike oversaw
the company’s operations for the next two decades opening a new chain of stores called
Market Basket.
A family feud ensued between the sons of the founder. The split was over the control of the
supermarkets and redistribution of its assets and led to a lawsuit which became the most
expensive and drawn-out lawsuit in Massachusetts history. Despite these legal issues,
DeMoulas and Market Basket stores continued to be successful with increasing sales. The
success placed the privately held company in the top 500 Forbes ranked companies in the
United States, also ranking the Demoulas family itself as one of the "400 Richest People in
America" . This was accomplished by a company that was committed to operate in economically
struggling communities unlike other chains that had abandoned these cities and towns. And
much like where they started in the City of Lowell, Massachusetts Market Basket continues to
contribute heavily to local charities.
Market Basket Locations
Market Basket has 29 supermarkets located in New Hampshire and operates 36 stores in
Eastern Massachusetts from Lowell to New Bedford.
Sales Cycles
Sales begin on Sundays and end on Saturdays. Market Basket does have an extended sales
cycle during the last two weeks of each year which coincide with the Christmas and New Year’s day holidays.
Market Basket Circular
Market Basket publishes a newspaper and in-home mailed Market Basket circular that are available Thursdays
before the next sales cycle. You may request home delivery by U.S. Mail if you do not presently
receive a Market Basket circular.
There is no company web presence or electronic circular published by Market Basket.
Market Basket Coupon Policy – Matching
Market Basket:
accepts manufacturer's coupons, including printable internet coupons (must be clear and exact
for the item purchased).
does not double coupons.
does not accept competitor's coupons.
allows combining store coupons and manufacturer's coupons.
do not limit the number of the same coupon per transaction
do not allow for combining BOGO and a $/1 on 2 items.
do not allow overage on coupon redemption.
Market Basket allows using one store coupon + one manufacture’s coupon–on the same item.
Market Basket publishes a quarterly an in-store coupon booklet of store and manufacturer
coupons.
Be sure to use the Market Basket circular along with Market Basket coupons to maximize your savings! |
