Stanley Stores Inc. was a family-owned regional

grocery store A grocery store ( AE), grocery shop ( BE) or simply grocery is a store that primarily retails a general range of food products, which may be fresh or packaged. In everyday U.S. usage, however, "grocery store" is a synonym for supermarket, a ...

chain in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, with its headquarters in Bay City,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. The chain operated three brands. Stanley Stores was the conventional grocery store brand. The ''

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...

'' said that the brands Price Lo Supermarkets and Foods "4" Less were "modern, warehouse-type food stores with large sales and cut-rate prices."Staff.
Price-Lo Supermarkets opens two new stores in Houston
" ''

''. Sunday July 24, 1988. Business 6. Retrieved on November 20, 2011. In 1994 Greg Hassel of the ''

'' said that Stanley Stores was one of several "small area outfits" operating stores in the Houston area.Hassel, Greg.
AppleTree to hand over most stores this week
" ''

''. Tuesday January 4, 1994. Business 1. Retrieved on December 1, 2011.

History

O. B. Stanley established the chain in 1945. The first location, a drive-in grocery in

Bay City, Texas Bay City is a city in Matagorda County, Texas, United States. The population was 17,614 at the 2010 census and 18,061 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Matagorda County. The current mayor is Robert Nelson. Geography According to ...

,O.B. Stanley
" (Obituaries) ''

The Victoria Advocate ''The Victoria Advocate'' is a daily newspaper independently published in Victoria, Texas. It is the second-oldest paper in Texas and the oldest west of the Colorado River, dating back to May 8, 1846, following the Battle of Palo Alto during the ...

''. Saturday April 19, 2008. B3. Retrieved from Google News (6 of 23) on November 21, 2011. was the Stanley's Superette. Originally O. B. Stanley served as the president of Stanley Stores. Fred C. Stanley became the president of Stanley Stores in 1962. At its peak the chain operated 33 stores. In 1988 Stanley Stores had 30 locations in Texas and

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. At that period the stores ranged in size between and . During that year, it opened two new stores in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

, including one location and one location. O. B. Stanley, in regards to the changes in size, said "We've gotten a little bigger since then. Our operations have changed with the times." Around January 1994 Stanley Stores acquired the Lake Jackson

Appletree Markets AppleTree Markets was a supermarket chain in Texas formed in 1969 when Safeway opened its first stores in Houston, which were spun off under the AppleTree name in 1988. The division once had 100 stores in Greater Houston and Greater Austin. By Ja ...

location after the chain sold many of its locations. In December 1994 Stanley Stores filed for

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

reorganization in a federal bankruptcy court in Houston. It owed Grocers Supply Inc. $14 million. At the time it had 29 stores in Texas and Louisiana and 1,400 employees.Workman, Jay.
Stanley reaches deal to get out of bankruptcy
" ''

''. Wednesday November 15, 1995. 5B. Retrieved from Google News (8 of 19) on November 21, 2011. By February 1995 seven stores had closed. In November 1995 Stanley Stores reached an agreement to get out of bankruptcy protection. At that time it had 15 stores and 750 employees. Fred Stanley, then still serving as president of the chain, died on Monday, July 12, 1999 from cancer. The chain made several donations to the Bay City Museum.Willey, Scott Reese.
Grocer remembered fondly for his service
" ''

''. July 15, 1999. 1E. Retrieved on November 21, 2011. "Stanley Stores also made considerable donations to the Bay City Museum"

References

{{Supermarkets of the United States Supermarkets of the United States Companies based in Texas Matagorda County, Texas American companies established in 1945 Retail companies established in 1945 Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1994 1940s establishments in Texas