Finast

First National Supermarkets, Inc.
First National Stores
Finast

File:Finast Final Logo.png
File:Finast Bedford, OH (9670629770).jpg A former Finast location at Meadowbrook Market Square in Bedford, Ohio
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Retail
Founded	1853
Defunct	1993 (store operations) 1996 (brand discontinued)
Fate	Acquired by Pick-N-Pay Supermarkets and subsequently by Ahold Stores rebranded as Pick-N-Pay, Edwards, and Tops Friendly Markets Finast private label eventually discontinued
Headquarters	Initially Somerville, Massachusetts Later based in Maple Heights, Ohio
Key people	Michael O'Keeffe (co-founder and inaugural president)
Products	Grocery
Parent	Ahold

Finast was a supermarket brand that originated in the northeastern United States, with its original headquarters located in Somerville, Massachusetts. The name Finast derived from the syllabic abbreviation of "First National Stores." Commonly known as "The First National," the chain operated under this full name for many years, while the Finast designation was initially reserved for its proprietary product lines. Eventually, as part of a modernization initiative, most stores adopted the Finast name.

The formation of Finast came through the consolidation of three regional grocery chains: M. O'Keeffe's, Inc., the John T. Connor Company, and the Ginter Company. This merger took place on December 28, 1925, leading to the incorporation of First National Stores. Among these entities, M. O'Keeffe's was the largest with 330 locations in 1922, compared to Connor’s 307 and Ginter’s 150 outlets that year. By the merger date in 1925, M. O’Keeffe’s had expanded to 650 stores across New England. Initially focusing on the Boston metropolitan area, the company broadened its footprint throughout New England and expanded into New York and New Jersey. In 1961, it acquired Safeway stores within the New York City metropolitan region.

Michael O'Keeffe, an immigrant from County Clare, Ireland, co-founded First National Stores and served as its first president. Leadership later passed to his son Arthur O'Keeffe in 1933, who was subsequently succeeded by his brother Adrian O'Keeffe.

In 1978, First National Stores was acquired by Pick-N-Pay Supermarkets based in northeast Ohio. Following this acquisition, regional headquarters for New England and New York operations were relocated to a distribution hub in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, while corporate headquarters moved to Maple Heights, Ohio. Pick-N-Pay initiated a rebranding of its Northeast outlets under the Edwards Super Food Store banner. Concurrently, Pick-N-Pay renamed itself First National Supermarkets, Inc., converting its own stores to operate under the Finast brand.

File:Finast.svg

Logo used from 1964 to 1982

Among the largest Finast supermarkets was one situated at Cross County Shopping Center in Yonkers, New York. This store featured a conveyor belt system enabling shoppers to drive alongside the building and have their groceries loaded directly into their vehicles—a convenience also available at select other Finast locations.

The Dutch retail conglomerate Ahold, which had entered the U.S. market by acquiring Bi-Lo Supermarkets in the Southeast in 1977, purchased Finast in 1988. By 1994, Ahold had completed converting all remaining Pick-N-Pay stores to the Finast brand.

Following Ahold’s acquisition of the Stop & Shop chain in 1996, most Edwards stores were rebranded as Stop & Shop locations. Due to Federal Trade Commission regulations requiring divestiture of approximately twenty stores during this transaction, some outlets were sold off. The remaining Midwest Finast stores were rebranded under Ahold's Buffalo-based unit at that time, Tops Friendly Markets. Although Ahold continued using the Finast name for its private-label products across chains such as Giant-Carlisle, it ultimately phased out this brand in favor of labels aligned with each individual grocery chain’s identity.