Omni Superstore was a chain of
supermarkets
A supermarket is a self-service shop offering a wide variety of food, beverages and household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earlier grocery stores, but is smaller and more limit ...
in the
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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area and was owned by
Dominick's
Dominick's was a Chicago-area grocery store chain and subsidiary of Safeway Inc. Dominick's distribution center was located in Northlake, Illinois, while its management offices were located in Oak Brook, Illinois.
History
Founding
Dominick DiMa ...
. In 1997,
Dominick's
Dominick's was a Chicago-area grocery store chain and subsidiary of Safeway Inc. Dominick's distribution center was located in Northlake, Illinois, while its management offices were located in Oak Brook, Illinois.
History
Founding
Dominick DiMa ...
phased out Omni and converted the stores into
Dominick's
Dominick's was a Chicago-area grocery store chain and subsidiary of Safeway Inc. Dominick's distribution center was located in Northlake, Illinois, while its management offices were located in Oak Brook, Illinois.
History
Founding
Dominick DiMa ...
because the concept was not generating enough revenue compared to other Dominick's stores.
History
Opening
In April 1987, Dominick's Finer Foods opened the first Omni Superstore in the Lake View Plaza in
Orland Park, Illinois
Orland Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, with a small portion in Will County. The village is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, Orland Park had a population of 58,703.
Located 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Chicago ...
, at the corner of 159th Street and LaGrange Road.
Dominick's created Omni Superstore in order to compete with the introduction of
Cub Foods
Cub is an American supermarket chain. It operates stores in Minnesota and Illinois. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of SuperValu Inc., based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
History Beginnings
Cub Foods was founded by Minnesota-based Hooley ...
into the
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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grocery market in the mid 1980s.
Dominick's
Dominick's was a Chicago-area grocery store chain and subsidiary of Safeway Inc. Dominick's distribution center was located in Northlake, Illinois, while its management offices were located in Oak Brook, Illinois.
History
Founding
Dominick DiMa ...
and their developers referred to Omni Superstore as a
Cub Foods
Cub is an American supermarket chain. It operates stores in Minnesota and Illinois. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of SuperValu Inc., based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
History Beginnings
Cub Foods was founded by Minnesota-based Hooley ...
with more pizazz. Omni Superstore was Dominick's reaction and answer to the low prices and warehouse/no frills attitude that
Cub Foods
Cub is an American supermarket chain. It operates stores in Minnesota and Illinois. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of SuperValu Inc., based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
History Beginnings
Cub Foods was founded by Minnesota-based Hooley ...
possessed.
(
Cub Foods
Cub is an American supermarket chain. It operates stores in Minnesota and Illinois. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of SuperValu Inc., based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
History Beginnings
Cub Foods was founded by Minnesota-based Hooley ...
eventually left the Chicago Market in 2006 due to anti-trust regulations; its parent company
Supervalu acquired the
Jewel-Osco
Jewel-Osco is a regional supermarket chain in the Chicago metropolitan area, headquartered in Itasca, Illinois, Itasca, a western suburb. In 2007, the company had 188 stores across northern, central, and western Illinois; eastern Iowa; and porti ...
chain.)
17 more stores were to follow in the next 10 years in the
Chicago metropolitan area
The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hi ...
. Omni would eventually be phased out by
Dominick's
Dominick's was a Chicago-area grocery store chain and subsidiary of Safeway Inc. Dominick's distribution center was located in Northlake, Illinois, while its management offices were located in Oak Brook, Illinois.
History
Founding
Dominick DiMa ...
for various reasons ranging from consumer preference to responding to competition from new stores such as
Meijer
Meijer Inc. (, ; stylized as meijer) is an American supercenter chain that primarily operates throughout the Midwest. Its corporate headquarters are in Walker, Michigan, which is a part of the Grand Rapids metropolitan area. Founded in 1934 as ...
(first Chicago-area store opened in August 1999),
Whole Foods
Whole Foods Market IP, Inc., a subsidiary of Amazon, is an upscale American multinational supermarket chain headquartered in Austin, Texas, which sells products free from hydrogenated fats and artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives. A USDA ...
and
Wal-Mart
Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquarter ...
entering the Chicago market.
Entry into Indiana
Dominick's opened an Omni Superstore in 1991 in
Schererville, Indiana
Schererville is a town in St. John Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 29,646 at the 2020 census It is a suburb of Chicago located just 30 miles south of the city
History
Long before Indiana became a state ...
. The store became a Dominick's in 1997 and closed in 1999 and sat empty for four years.
When Omni Superstore moved into
Strack & Van Til's home territory of Northwest Indiana in 1991, Strack's posted billboards that said "We still bag em" referring to the fact that Strack's still bagged your groceries but customers at Omni have to bag their own items. Omni Superstore and Strack & Van Til competed effectively and both sustained loyal customers and good business, up until the fallout of Omni Superstore to Dominick's.
Dominick's also planned for there to be an Omni Superstore in
Hammond, Indiana
Hammond ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area, and the only city in Indiana to border Chicago. First settled in the mid-19th century, it is one of the oldest cities of northern Lake County. As of the ...
at the Hammond Mills shopping center at 165th and Indianapolis Boulevard. The Hammond Omni Superstore opened as a Dominick's in January 1999. Due to the local shopping habits of consumers in Hammond, Dominick's European higher price point Fresh Store did not succeed in Hammond and the store closed 7 months later. This was Dominick's final exit out of the Indiana market.
Expansion and conversion to Dominick's
Omni Superstore continued to add stores under the leadership of Dominick's. However, the Omni format was not doing as well as the Dominick's Fresh stores, so Domimick's announced in October 1997 that the Omni stores would be changed to the Fresh format.
Prior to the sale of Dominick's to
Safeway
Safeway is an American supermarket chain founded by Marion Barton Skaggs in April 1915 in American Falls, Idaho. The chain provides grocery items, food and general merchandise and features a variety of specialty departments, such as bakery, d ...
, it was suggested in Crain's Chicago Business that a potential buyer might have done well to expand the Omni stores beyond Chicago.
Many of the Omni stores converted to Dominick's closed because many customers were used to shopping at Omni for lower prices and a "no frills" type shopping experience. Even though the store decor was much improved and gave a European feel, many regular customers fled because prices increased dramatically.
In 1998, Dominick's was purchased by Safeway.
The fresh market concept was eliminated and many poorly performing stores were later closed.
The Clybourn Avenue
Dominick's
Dominick's was a Chicago-area grocery store chain and subsidiary of Safeway Inc. Dominick's distribution center was located in Northlake, Illinois, while its management offices were located in Oak Brook, Illinois.
History
Founding
Dominick DiMa ...
in Chicago is the remaining Omni Superstore buildings now occupied by Dominick's. According to a Dominick's manager, the Dominick's that opened in
Matteson, Illinois
Matteson () is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 19,073 at the 2020 census. It is a suburb of Chicago.
History
The area encompassed by modern Matteson was settled in the late 1800s, primarily by people of Germa ...
in 1989 was supposed to be opened as an Omni Superstore, but at the last minute was changed to a Dominick's due to municipality issues. In 1997 in nearby
Chicago Heights, Illinois
Chicago Heights is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 27,480 at the 2020 census. In earlier years, Chicago Heights was nicknamed "The Crossroads of the Nation". Currently, it is nicknamed "The Heights".
Geograp ...
the Sun Times reported construction began on a Omni Superstore, which never opened at the northwest corner of Lincoln Hwy and Western Avenue. Additionally, according to the Northwest Indiana Times newspaper, the Dominick's that opened in Hammond, Indiana in 1999 was supposed to be an Omni Superstore as well. This store opened as a Dominick's and closed within 7 months. It was later reopened as a
Kroger
The Kroger Company, or simply Kroger, is an American retail company that operates (either directly or through its subsidiaries) supermarkets and multi-department stores throughout the United States.
Founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cincin ...
under the name of
Food4Less
Food 4 Less is the name of several grocery store chains, the largest of which is currently owned by Kroger. It is a no-frills grocery store where the customers bag their own groceries at the checkout. Kroger operates Food 4 Less stores in the ...
.
Safeway
Safeway is an American supermarket chain founded by Marion Barton Skaggs in April 1915 in American Falls, Idaho. The chain provides grocery items, food and general merchandise and features a variety of specialty departments, such as bakery, d ...
appears to be keeping the rights to the Omni name by using it on a line of
organic
Organic may refer to:
* Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity
* Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ
Chemistry
* Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...
store brand
A private label, also called a private brand or private-label brand, is a brand owned by a company, offered by that company alongside and competing with brands from other businesses. A private-label brand is almost always offered exclusively by th ...
foods in Dominick's and other Safeway stores.
Legacy
The CEO of Dominick's, Bob Mariano, who also ran the Omni Superstore discount division, has created a chain of stores in the Chicago area under the Mariano's banner. The Mariano's banner clearly shows a store operations model and store design similar to that of the Bob Mariano run Omni Superstore. Some features include:
-Open exposed ceiling structure with a warehouse loft style feeling.
-Employees are only allowed to wear black and white. Men must wear a dress shirt and black tie, while women wear more casual black and white attire.
-Overhead Paging is quite frequent.
-A large presence of ethnic and local products tailored to the neighborhood.
-A large bulk food aisle with Costco styled multi packs.
-A store footprint that closely resembles that of an Omni/Dominick's under Mariano's leadership.
Store Layout
Omni Superstore Graphics and Departmental Naming
Omni Superstore featured a bakery, Hero's Deli, Field Fresh Produce Section, Great Lakes Seafood, The Dairy Depot, The Greenery Floral Department, 1 hour photo department, large general merchandise department, Homestyle home goods department, The Cheese Shop, cosmetics counter, pharmacy department, and a wholesale/family pack foods area with large 20' orange industrial steel shelving that separated the general merchandise area from the grocery area. Early Omni Superstore's contained a video department while newer ones dropped this department. The Orland Park Omni had a separate Video store entrance next to the exit doors.
Departmental names were synonymous with
Chicago
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, the
Midwest
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...
and
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...
. This was highly innovative as most US grocery stores at the time, called departments simply, "produce," "dairy," and "meat department." This new naming convention was the responsibility of the team of Louis Germano, Director of Dominick's store planning, Schafer Associates who was Omni's project architect and Jarob Design/Programmed Products who were responsible for the signage and graphics.
Store layout
Except for Round Lake Beach, IL and McHenry, IL Omni, which was laid out like a conventional Dominick's, most all Omni's followed a similar layout. The only deviation from this was the constant experimentation of where to place the 1 hour photo department/electronics counter and cosmetics counters. Orland Park Omni had the Cosmetics at the back of the store with the 1 hour photo on a mezzanine, while Aurora had the 1 hour photo counter directly next to the pharmacy while Crestwood and Schererville had the cosmetics at the front on the other side of the wall from the Hero's Deli. Merchandising and store layout experimentation was frequent at Omni. Although the stores followed the basic floor plan, each Omni had a different feel than the other.
There were no "flipped floor plan" Omni's. That is, you entered every Omni on the right hand side of the building and exited on the Left side of the building.
A large 15' wide aisle led customers from the front entrance directly towards the back of the store. On the right, perpendicular to the main aisle, were the general merchandise shelving gondolas. A tall mezzanine housed the 1 Hour Photo Department in the center of these general merchandise aisles. To the left of the main front to back walkway was the large 20' shelving and beyond that the grocery department, which was larger than the general merchandise aisle and consisted of over 15 aisles.
The produce department and bakery were located at the far left end of the store. Unlike most supermarkets where the produce department is near the main entrance, the "Field Fresh Produce" department, "The Greenery" floral department and Main Bakery were located at the last stop before the checkouts.
The Hero's Deli was located directly to the right of the entrance in the general merchandise area. Customers were forced to walk through the deli area and naturally walk through the general merchandise area before they made it to the grocery section. A section called Omni "Superbuys" was located in the general merchandise area, which featured deep discount items.
Space-frame canopies held signage and lighting at many of the departments along the back wall near Great Lakes Seafood, Dairy Depot, Meat Department, Field Fresh Produce, and the Greenery. The department names were labeled with different fonts and different graphics mounted on the space-frame canopy.
Early locations used Ceramic Metal Halide lighting, while later stores used industrial strip fluorescent lighting.
An Average Omni Superstore was . to ., while its sister Dominick's Food and Drug combo stores ranged around .
Other Unique Features
The first Omni Superstore in Orland Park originally used a large black 10' high banding with photographs of the different items in the department on the perimeter walls. This was eventually painted over and a white and orange color scheme with an orange band running the length of the perimeter walls.
A large "flying wave" Orange and White banner was hung in a curved wavy fashion over the entire grocery sales area. Early stores said "Lower Prices Overall" while the newer stores said "Discount Food and Drug."
Since 1988, St. Paul Federal Bank was the main banking center in the Illinois Omni Superstores.
In Indiana, Centier Bank opened a branch in the Indiana Omni Store.
Slogans
*"Take Home the Difference"
*"Lower Prices Overall" (the most common slogan)
*"Discount Food and Drug"
Former locations
*
Orland Park, Illinois
Orland Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, with a small portion in Will County. The village is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, Orland Park had a population of 58,703.
Located 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Chicago ...
- 15854 La Grange Road
(opened late 1986, closed 1999, reopened as split tenants, Best Buy and The Great Escape (Now Arhaus))
*
Glendale Heights, Illinois
Glendale Heights is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 33,176.
History
Glendale Heights was a small farming area served by the Glen Ellyn post office up until the 1950s, with a population ...
- 151 E. North Avenue
(opened 1987, closed 1999, location is currently Valli Produce)
*
Cicero, Illinois
Cicero (originally known as Hawthorne) is a suburb of Chicago and an Incorporated town#Illinois, incorporated town in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was ...
- 4779 W. Cermak Road
(opening not available, closed 1999, currently opened as an AMC theater)
*
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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- 2550 North Clybourn Avenue
(opened 1988, converted to Dominick's in 1997 and converted to a Jewel Osco in 2014)
*
McHenry, Illinois
McHenry is a city in McHenry County, Illinois, United States. It is a suburb, part of the Chicago metropolitan area and is located about 37 miles northwest of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 27,135. McHenry was at one time th ...
- 2000 Richmond Road
(opening date not available, renovated 1997, currently Hobby Lobby)
*
Niles, Illinois
Niles is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, located in the townships of Maine and Niles, directly neighboring the City of Chicago's far northwest border. Per the 2020 census, the population was 30,912. The current mayor of Niles ...
- 7801 N. Waukegan Road
(opening date not available, renovated 1997, closed 1999, currently opened as Super H Mart Asian Superstore)
*
Round Lake Beach, Illinois
Round Lake Beach is a northern suburb of Chicago in Lake County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 27,252.
The United States Census Bureau defines an urban area of northwest Chicago-area suburbs that are separated ...
- 750 E. Rollins Road
(opening date 1987, renovated 1997 then converted to Dominick's, closed April 2007, demolished in 2014 and became a Meijer in 2016)
*
Melrose Park, Illinois
Melrose Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a suburb of Chicago. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 24,796. Melrose Park had long been home to a large Italian-American population.
The suburb was the home of ...
- 8315 W. North Avenue
(opening date not available, renovated 1997, closed 1999, building now houses Lincoln College of Technology)
*
Aurora, Illinois
Aurora is a city in the Chicago metropolitan area located partially in DuPage County, Illinois, DuPage, Kane County, Illinois, Kane, Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall, and Will County, Illinois, Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Locat ...
- Illinois Route 59 and 75th Street
(opening date late 1988, renovated 1997, closed 1999, became split tenants, Bob's Discount Furniture and Hobby Lobby)
*
Prospect Heights, Illinois
Prospect Heights is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States and is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 16,058.
Geography
According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Prospect Heights has a total area of , of whic ...
- 1241 North Rand Road
(opening date not available, renovated 1997, closed 2006, later became Ultra Foods opened 2013, currently became Tony's Finer Foods in 2016)
*
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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- 4700 South Damen Avenue
(opening date 1989, renovated 1997, closed 1999, became Value City in 2001 until 2008, demolished in 2011, rebuilt and currently opened as split tenants, Burlington Coat Factory and Dollar Tree in 2012)
*
Crestwood, Illinois
Crestwood is a village about 24 miles southwest of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 10,826.
The Windy City ThunderBolts of the independent baseball Frontier League play at Ozinga Field in ...
- 13180 South Cicero Avenue
(opening date 1990, renovated 1997, operated as Dominick's until late 2007, currently operating as Ultra Foods which opened in 2012, closed June 18, 2017, currently operating as At Home: The Home Decor Superstore in 2019)
*
Schererville, Indiana
Schererville is a town in St. John Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 29,646 at the 2020 census It is a suburb of Chicago located just 30 miles south of the city
History
Long before Indiana became a state ...
- 1515 US Route 41
(opening date 1991, renovated 1997, closed 1999, currently operating as a Strack and Van Til Supermarket which opened in 2003)
*
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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- 3250 West 87th Street
(opening date 1992, renovated 1997, closed 1999, operating as Ultra Foods as of May 31,2007, closed April 18, 2017)
*
Bridgeview, Illinois
Bridgeview is a village in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is located approximately southwest of the Chicago Loop. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the village population was 17,027.
History
The e ...
- 7755 South Harlem Avenue
(opening date 1989 as Auchan Hypermarket, renovated to Omni in 1991, relocated to a new Dominick's location further south (closed April 2007) on Harlem Avenue in 1999, former Omni building location abandoned in 1997. Demolished in February 2006.)
*
Elgin, Illinois
Elgin ( ) is a city in Cook and Kane counties in the northern part of the U.S. state of Illinois. Elgin is located northwest of Chicago, along the Fox River. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 114,797, the seventh-large ...
- 250 Randall Road
(opening date 1993, renovated 1997, closed 2004, location is currently Burlington Coat Factory opened 2009)
References
{{Supermarkets of the United States
Defunct supermarkets of the United States
Retail companies established in 1987
Retail companies disestablished in 1997
1987 establishments in Illinois