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Saunders opened 
the Piggly Wiggly 
self-service 
grocery in 1916. 
By 1923 he had a 
chain of 2,800 
stores across 
the USA. Saunders 
pioneered self-
service and brand 
choice, giving 
consumers a 
cheaper and 
a much quicker
one-stop shop
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In the economic 
austerity that 
followed the 
second world war, 
the supermarket 
was slow to 
arrive in Europe. 
The US, meanwhile, 
raised the super-
market to an art
form, so by the
time it crossed
the Atlantic in
the Fifties the 
concept was 
highly developed
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By the Sixties 
supermarkets 
were to be found 
on every town's
main street in 
Britain and
competition was
fierce. Price 
wars and pro-
motions became
a daily feature of 
supermarket 
shopping. But 
subtler psycho-
logical devices
have also been 
used to keep
shoppers spending
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The biggest 
worry of the 
supermarkets has 
always been how 
to ensure the 
loyalty of their 
customers. With 
little difference 
between the 
range or quality 
of products 
offered by the 
competing 
supermarkets, 
they have 
worked hard at 
building distinct 
identities
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The self-service 
nature of the 
supermarket 
crated a need 
for new kinds of 
packaging, both 
for hygiene and 
for product 
recognition. The 
snappy designs 
also provided a 
way to make 
unexciting 
products seem 
attractive to the 
consumer
#
After the 
hardships of 
wartime rationing 
the supermarket 
was greeted 
enthusiastically 
by British 
shoppers. They 
became symbols 
of the new age of 
technology and 
choice
#
The shopping cart 
was the innovation 
that allowed 
supermarkets to 
thrive. Previously 
customers bought 
only what could 
be carried 
comfortably, but 
the arrival of the 
shopping cart 
encouraged them 
to make larger 
purchases
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Supermarket 
shopping is no 
longer just a daily 
chore, it is a 
social event with 
little pleasures all 
of its own
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