Howdy folks, and welcome back to Houston Historic Retail! In this episode, we’re going somewhere we’ve never been before, so you know it’s special! Today, we’ll be visiting HHR’s first Sellers Bros. Well, at least, the first full store, as the two free-standing C-Stores were featured on HHR a few years back. This example at 9494 Hammerly Blvd, Houston, TX 77080, originally started life in 1979 as a Weingarten’s, and has a cool story. Weingarten’s #62 was only the chain’s third location in the Spring Branch area. The first Spring Branch Weingarten’s opened in 1956 at Long Point and Wirt and was an early example of the “Ranch Style Weingarten’s.” The store was a bit of a “show off” in the middle of Gerland’s country. For example, it was the second location in the chain to feature UPC barcode scanners. It’s unclear what exactly kept Weingarten from expanding in the area. Still, a common rumor in grocery circles seems to be that the local chains mostly had a gentlemen’s agreement in avoiding each other’s home bases. So how did this Weingarten’s end up here? Well, in 1973, Weingarten’s took over the operation and lease of the four Target Foods Supermarkets in town. One was in Hedwig Village, which would operate until 1979, when it was booted by Target’s desire to lease the space to Marshalls. Likely to help keep store count and profits up before putting themselves up for sale, this location was planned and opened in 1979, coincidentally the same year the Weingarten family agreed to sell their grocery chain to Grand Union.
Despite being my first visit to Sellers Bros, this was not the first time I’d smelled them grilling meat, it was very very tempting.
I found it interesting the exterior signage was in English, but their social media is all in Spanish.
This Pan Dulce case, is the closest thing to a service department in the store.
The store was not very big, which was a fault of Weingarten’s during this era.
Despite this the store is well stocked, a little bit of everything really.
Bulk beans! It says something about trust that a small store like this doesn’t mind keeping these out in a bulk bin.
It’s telling when the MaSeCa is the most recognizable brand in the photo. What’s Raport energy?
But on the flipside here’s some recognizable bulk product displays!
More name brand bulk, along with meat and dairy coolers along walls.
In 2019, Sellers Bros was purchased by Rafael Ortega, the owner of El Ahorro, La Michoacana, and Food City
The meat department here, is a big draw, just like those other chains.
While there’s no counter for custom cuts, the butchering is done at the store.
I have been to a few Sellers Bros locations years ago, so I’m not sure what has changed with now ownership.
Comparing old photos online, it looks like almost nothing.
This struck me as a possible location of a former service department.
The Sellers Bros tilework still looks great over 20 years later, I know. a few chains who could take a hint!
Merchandise on top of coolers? Grand Union would be proud!
Speaking of General Merchandise, this store seemed to carry a decent amount, which brings up an interesting point.
Despite having a distinct Hispanic influence, I think it’s still fair to categorize Sellers Bros as a specifically Hispanic grocer.
I felt that Sellers Bros was closer in fact to a neighborhood sized Fiesta.
It certainly has an “international” influence, but it is still traditionally merchandised.
Your personal favorite brand may not be for sale, but chances are the item you’re looking for is in stock.
Ultimately, Sellers Bros is an important part of the communities in which they operate. Independent grocers are not only food sources, but employers, meeting places, and communities.
Almost immediately after Weigarten’s sale, things began to fall apart quickly, but that’s a separate article, specifically this one. Weingarten’s quick downfall meant stores went up for sale still in operation. In December 1983, Weingarten’s announced their plans to shut down, and by February, they had sold the bulk of their stores to various operators, including this location to Gerland’s. One of the smaller buyers, this location was likely a special deal or possibly even a bit of a concession for Gerland’s, who christened it Store No. 1 (which relocated multiple times over the years). The store was a personal point of pride for Gerland’s, who likely ran it above the standard it opened to in 1979. Unfortunately, though, undocumented issues would prompt Gerland’s to ditch the store in late 1998. A brief, undocumented stint as “Gerland’s Food Pantry” indicates that sales were probably lagging due to changing demographics. In 2000, the Sellers Bros chain would get its hands on this old Weingarten’s. They would strip out most of the remaining Gerland’s appointments, updating to the chain Sellers Bros. standards. Sellers Bros. overall has done quite well. Originally established around 1950 as an independent grocer, it would slowly grow to a chain of supermarkets by the 90s. The chain fills a unique niche in the Houston market. It’s not specifically a Hispanic Supermarket but seems to serve a customer base closer to Fiesta. It would be a good comparison, a smaller neighborhood Fiesta, and overall an enjoyable experience. In late 2019, Rafael Ortega
I don’t remember ever seeing any of the larger Sellers Bros stores on the east side. I remember the brand specifically because of a convenience store that was the endcap of the strip mall at 729 Queens Rd in Pasadena. If you use the Google Maps time machine you can see that it was still their personnel training center up until about 2018. Anyway, back in the ’70s a couple of friends and I would ride our bikes to that store even though it was several miles away, because they had the BEST candy selection in all of Pasadena. A lot of our allowance money went to that store!
I don’t remember ever seeing any of the larger Sellers Bros stores on the east side. I remember the brand specifically because of a convenience store that was the endcap of the strip mall at 729 Queens Rd in Pasadena. If you use the Google Maps time machine you can see that it was still their personnel training center up until about 2018. Anyway, back in the ’70s a couple of friends and I would ride our bikes to that store even though it was several miles away, because they had the BEST candy selection in all of Pasadena. A lot of our allowance money went to that store!