| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Grocery |
| Founded | Chicopee, Massachusetts (1936) (as "Y Cash Market") |
| Headquarters | Springfield, Massachusetts, United States of America |
| Number of locations | 59 |
| Key people | Paul D'Amour, Gerald D'Amour, Founders Donald D'Amour, Chief Executive Officer Charles D'Amour, President/COO |
| Revenue | $1.22 Billion USD (2004) |
| Website | bigy.com |
Big Y Foods, Inc. (or Big Y) is an American supermarket chain. Big Y has stores in Connecticut and Massachusetts; it operates under the names "Big Y World Class Market" or "Big Y Supermarket."
In 1936, a young entrepreneur, Paul D'Amour, with aid from his brother Gerald and sisters Ann Marie, Yvette, and Gertrude, purchased the Y Cash Market in the Willimansett section of Chicopee, Massachusetts at an intersection where two roads converged at a "Y". On December 12, 1936, the brothers began Y Cash Market, the forerunner of Big Y. The company is headquartered in Springfield, Massachusetts. Big Y now is run by cousins Charles and Donald D'Amour.
Big Y is one of the largest independently-owned supermarket chains in New England, and employs over 8,500 people. Big Y is the 268th-largest private company in the US, according to the 2005 Forbes Magazine "500 Largest Private Companies" list.[1]
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As of October, 2011, Big Y operates 59 supermarkets (29 in Massachusetts and 30 in Connecticut);[2] many of which are in the metropolitan areas of Springfield, Worcester, and Hartford, Connecticut. Big Y also operates the Table & Vine liquor store in West Springfield, plus the Fresh Acres Market, a concept mixing an open-air-style farmers' market with upscale food choices, in Springfield. Throughout its region, Big Y competes mostly with Boston's Stop & Shop, and to a lesser extent with Boston-based Shaw's and Albany, New York's Price Chopper chain.
Some Big Ys offer free child care for customers, operating as the Little Y Kids' Club. Big Y also competes by offering "buy one, get two free" sales and special coins redeemable for discounts that change bi-monthly.
Unlike most supermarkets, whose sales run Sunday to Saturday, Big Y's sales week is Thursday to Wednesday, as most customers get paid on Thursdays.
In 2011, Big Y's 75th anniversary, plans included a gala and a sweepstakes for customers with a top prize of $75,000; the drawing was held at the Big E.
In 2010, Big Y announced that its expansion included Lee, Franklin, and Milford, Massachusetts; according to its website, each town would have a store by 2012. The Lee store opened in November 2011; the chain's newest location. Big Y also announced a new store in Foxborough, expanding into the Greater Boston area.
While Big Y has stores near the New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont borders, expansion into these states has not been announced.
In late 2010, Big Y purchased seven stores from A&P, which was abandoning central Connecticut. Four of these (Branford, Mystic, Old Lyme, West Hartford) were re-opened as Big Y World Class Markets, bringing Big Y's Connecticut store count to 29. Another Big Y opened in Meriden, Connecticut in August 2011.