Hamady was an American
supermarket
A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. Strictly speaking, a supermarket is larger and has a wider selecti ...
chain based in
Flint, Michigan
Flint is the largest city in Genesee County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. Located along the Flint River (Michigan), Flint River northwest of Detroit, it is a principal city within the Central Michigan, Mid Michigan region. Flin ...
, United States, which at its peak had 37 stores and 1,300 employees.
Given the chain's pervasiveness in the area, paper grocery bags were known as “Hamady sacks”.
History
Hamady Brothers was founded in 1911
by Michael and Kamol Hamady, who were immigrant cousins from
Lebanon
Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
and referred to themselves as brothers.
The first store was opened on East Dayton Street and Industrial Avenue in Flint.
Michael Hamady was the first CEO and was followed by his son Robert in 1954, his grand-nephew Jack in 1967, and by his grandson Robert Lee in 1969. Robert Lee restructured the company and sold it in 1974 to Alex Dandy.
[
The chain expanded through Michigan in 1980 by purchasing 21 closed ]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 Cinc ...
stores, primarily on the west side of the state. In July and September 1985, Hamady bought two Hutch's supermarkets in Owosso, Michigan
Owosso () is the largest city in Shiawassee County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 14,714 at the 2020 census. It is located west of Flint, and northeast of Lansing. The city is mostly surrounded by Owosso Township on its we ...
and in October bought Vescio's five stores in Saginaw County. The two acquisitions, which would be rebranded as Hamady stores, bringing the chain's store total to 30. As a result, an existing Hamady in Owosso was converted to a discount store called Price Rite. Price Rite was run by a division of Durant Enterprises, Dandy's parent corporation.
Al Kessel formed a union breaking contract with Kroger and hired all non-union employees at vastly reduced wages. Still a union company, Hamady was unable to compete with the newly formed "Kessel" Kroger stores. In order to stay in business, Hamady asked their union employees to take concessions, siting that if they did not, the company would eventually have to close. The Union chose to strike in November 1987. Workers from other unions, including the UAW stood on the picket lines with Hamady employees and successfully closed the last union grocery company in Genesee County.
The strike lasted seven weeks until January 1988, causing Hamady to lose the holiday sales.[ Hamady declared bankruptcy in 1988 due to the lost revenue during the strike. Dandy's company also acquired Chatham, which was liquidated due to the strike. Due to the strike and subsequent bankruptcy, former Kroger locations, along with some former Vescio locations in ]Saginaw, Michigan
Saginaw () is a city in Saginaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. It had a population of 44,202 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along the Saginaw River, Saginaw is adjacent to Saginaw Charter Township, ...
, had closed. In March 1989, a reorganization plan by M&B Distribution board chairman James McColgan Sr. for Hamady Bros. was approved by Federal bankruptcy Judge Arthur J. Spector. McColgan Investment Co., a M&B subsidiary, purchased 21 Hamady Bros. supermarkets for about $17.9 million, to which Dandy objected.
By May 1989, Dandy had approved the sale of Hamady assets to McColgan Investment. McColgan became chairman and chief operating officer. Under the new management, the UFCW accepted concessions in their contract. A loss of sales during the "Dessert Storm" military offensive in Iraq, caused the chain to close the last of its 26 stores in 1991. 13 locations were sold to Kessel Food Markets
Kessel Food Markets was an American supermarket chain based in Michigan. It began in 1981 when Owosso, Michigan, native Al Kessel, a former executive vice president of Hamady Brothers supermarkets, purchased Kroger locations in Corunna, Michigan, ...
, which was founded in 1981 by former Hamady vice president Al Kessel.
Jim McColgan Jr. announced the opening of a Hamady Complete Food Center in a former Kroger location in August 2017 in Flint. The store permanently liquidated after failure to meet financial objectives after just three months.
References
{{Supermarkets of the United States
Defunct supermarkets of the United States
Retail companies established in 1911
Retail companies disestablished in 1991
Defunct companies based in Michigan
1911 establishments in Michigan
1991 disestablishments in Michigan