Hinky Dinky
| Founded | 1925 |
|---|---|
| Defunct | Template:End date and age |
| Fate | acquired by Nash Finch, all outlets either shuttered or rebranded |
| Headquarters | Omaha, Nebraska, U.S. |
Hinky Dinky was a supermarket chain headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, primarily serving the markets of Nebraska and Iowa.
History
The grocery chain known as Hinky Dinky was established in Omaha in 1925 by brothers Jule, Henry, and Albert Newman along with their cousin Ben Silver. At the time, the supermarket industry included an existing brand called Piggly Wiggly. Seeking to capitalize on consumers' fondness for memorable and whimsical names—similar to the success of Piggly Wiggly—they selected "Hinky-Dinky," inspired by the World War I-era tune “Hinky Dinky Parlez-vous” (referenced in Mademoiselle from Armentières).Template:Fix/category[citation needed]
In 1972, ownership of Hinky Dinky transferred to Cullum Companies based in Dallas, which also managed the Tom Thumb grocery chain. At its height, the Hinky Dinky brand operated close to 50 retail locations.[1] However, Cullum redirected earnings from Hinky Dinky to sustain Tom Thumb's operations, resulting in minimal capital reinvestment into Hinky Dinky stores.[2] Additionally, a labor strike by union employees in 1984 negatively impacted sales. By the mid-1980s, numerous Hinky Dinky outlets had been sold off or closed, leaving only a limited number of locations scattered across different areas. In 1985, Ron Badley acquired the Hinky Dinky brand along with several stores from Cullum. Eventually, in 2000, the remaining stores were sold to grocery distributor Nash Finch, which discontinued use of the Hinky Dinky name across all locations.[3]
Hinky Dinky was among the first supermarket chains to collaborate with banks by establishing banking offices within their stores.[4] For example, in April 1974, the company partnered with First Federal Savings & Loan to introduce dedicated banking kiosks inside its supermarkets.[5] These kiosks featured terminals capable of verifying transactions, recording them instantly, and updating customer accounts directly with the bank onsite. The terminals gained such widespread adoption among savings banks during the late 1970s that bankers commonly referred to them by the "Hinky Dinky" nickname.
In popular culture
- Within the television show Better Call Saul, specifically Season 2, Episode 7 titled 'Inflatable' (2016), the character Kim Wexler references the chain by reflecting that had she remained in her hometown, she might have ended up married to the local gas station owner and potentially employed as a cashier at Hinky Dinky.
References
- ↑ "Nash Finch Purchasing Hinky Dinky," Omaha World-Herald, January 18, 2000
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- ↑ Cash in Supermarkets, Time, June 9, 1975. Retrieved on August 17, 2022
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External links
- Hinky Dinky.net Archived 2012-03-31 at the Wayback Machine - A history of Hinky Dinky
- hinkydinky-dsm.com - Hinky Dinky - Des Moines store reunion website