My wife's grandparents owned Marons IGA here in Ovid for many years. They sold it to someone else a long time ago but it has stayed an IGA. That's a large chain in the Midwest USA as well. When I lived in California there was a few but no where near as many as around my home state.
I think it stands for International Grocers Association or is it Independent? I think its the latter actually? We have them here as well and there small town family groceries.
None of the above..but close.. What is IGA? The Independent Grocers Alliance (IGA) was founded in 1926, bringing together independent grocers across the United States to ensure that the trusted, family-owned local grocery store remained strong in the face of growing chain competition. Today, that entrepreneurial family business spirit is alive and well, and communities across the U.S. are being served by second, third and even fourth generation independent IGA retailers. And IGA is expanding across the globe, as well; IGA's Hometown Proud stores can now be found all around the world. In a time of cookie-cutter chains, IGA stores stand out as distinctively unique, just like the communities they serve. Stop in your local IGA and experience shopping the IGA way—with a promise of neighborly service from people you know and trust.
Our IGA is a Marketplace IGA which has the logo below. There were lots in BC a few years ago but have decreased in numbers lately. Not the cheapest place to shop but it works for our area. I really try to buy produce that is grown locally in the BC province but as the housing prices soar, our farmlands disappear. Most of our produce comes from California, Mexico and Chile. Northern Vancouver Island doesn't have any farmland so no Farmer's Markets. Central and Southern parts of the island have farms but the Farmer's Markets are slowly disappearing as well. With an environmental cultural push to shop for food produced within 100 miles of your residence, the markets might make a comeback. Getting workers on farms is getting harder and harder to get as the wages are so low for a lot of hard of work. Catch 22 - do we want cheap food or good wages for farm workers? There is no right answer unfortunately. End of rant!!!
IGA has a different meaning to our town. Years ago, a man named Gordon had a tandem reefer unit and used to bring fresh produce, meat and drycleaning service up to the North Island and stop in all the little communities to sell it. It must have been kind of weird to an outsider to see people lined up outside a truck on the side of the road. Demand was high for this service as everything was quite fresh so Gordon built a small mall attached to a grocery store and called the grocery store Gordon's. He did well for a few years but then slowly the quality decreased and things got pretty bad in the produce and meat department. The business folded and IGA rented the space and opened their grocery store. IGA became known as "Isn't Gordon's Anymore" . Since then IGA has built a new building and moved and Super Valu has moved into the old "Gordon's" store.
