Skaggs Companies

"Payless Drug Store" redirects here. For other uses, see Pay Less (disambiguation).

The Skaggs Companies, Inc.

Industry	Retail
Founded	1915 (1915)
Defunct	1979 (1979)
Successor	American Stores
Area served	United States
Products	Food, Prescriptions, Liquor
Subsidiaries	Skaggs Drug Centers Payless Drugs Osco Drug

The Skaggs Companies, Inc. served as the origin for several well-known retail chains in the United States, such as Safeway, Albertsons, Osco Drug, and Longs Drugs. Although the corporation once owned multiple drugstore chains, all were eventually divested. In 1979, Skaggs Companies transitioned into American Stores.

Safeway

Main article: Safeway Inc.

The initial enterprise began in American Falls, Idaho when Samuel M. Skaggs launched a grocery outlet named Skaggs' Cash Store in 1915, later transferring ownership to his son, Marion Barton Skaggs. The store’s title reflected its cash-only sales policy. With the collaboration of his five brothers—Pepper Oscar Skaggs, Aron Sylvester Skaggs, Loronzo L. Skaggs, Samuel Olnie Skaggs, and Levi Justin Skaggs—Marion expanded the business under two distinct entities: Skaggs Cash Stores managed by Pepper Oscar Skaggs and Skaggs United Stores overseen by Marion B. Skaggs. By 1920, their combined operations had grown to encompass 191 locations.

In 1921, Marion Barton Skaggs relocated to Portland, Oregon, where he acquired a residence in the Alameda neighborhood and opened four grocery outlets within the city. This expansion partly involved purchasing Freeman grocer and the Java Coffee Company.

By 1926, the chain had expanded to 673 stores and merged with the Sam Seelig Company in a transaction facilitated by Charles E. Merrill of Merrill Lynch, resulting in the formation of Safeway. Subsequently, Safeway acquired Pay and Take It Stores from Loronzo L. Skaggs in 1928. Safeway is regarded as the principal successor to the Skaggs enterprise. Despite the later acquisition of the Skaggs Companies by Albertsons, Safeway itself was also purchased by Albertsons, thereby completing a historical full circle.

Payless Drugs

Main article: Thrifty PayLess § History of PayLess

In 1932, L.J. Skaggs established Payless Drug Stores in Tacoma, Washington, which rapidly expanded throughout the western United States. Some outlets were sold to his brother Samuel "L.S." Olnie Skaggs—then serving as an executive at Safeway—and associates. L.J. Skaggs retained control over California Pay Less Stores, which eventually became part of Thrifty PayLess and are currently owned by Rite Aid. The remaining Pay-Less stores were rebranded as Skaggs Drug Stores in 1948 and later renamed Skaggs Drug Centers in 1965. In 1969, a collaboration between Albertsons supermarkets and Skaggs Drugs led to the creation of combined food and drug retail locations; this partnership concluded in 1977 with division of assets.

Payless of Tacoma operated independently within Pierce, Thurston, and Kitsap counties from Payless/House of Values, which was formed in 1973 following a merger between Seattle-based Gov Mart/Ba'zar and House of Values. To avoid confusion between these entities, stores retained the House of Values brand before transitioning to Value Giant. After Payless of Tacoma filed for bankruptcy in 1991, it merged with other existing Payless stores from the alternate company and discontinued use of the Value Giant name.

Historical photographs depicting a Payless Drug Store under L.J. Skaggs’ ownership are exhibited at the Albany Regional Museum located in Albany, Oregon. The downtown store situated at 2nd and Broadalbin Streets was relocated to Santiam Highway during the 1960s.

Osco Drug

Main article: Osco Drug

The origins of Osco Drug date back to 1915 when S.M. Skaggs opened a cash and carry outlet in American Falls, Idaho. Later, his son Lorenzo L. Skaggs, who had prior experience with the forerunner of Safeway, launched the Pay-Less chain in 1937 located in Rochester, Minnesota. In 1942, these businesses combined with other chains to create the Owners Service Company, commonly known as Osco. The company was acquired by The Jewel Companies, Inc. in 1961. Subsequently, in 1984, American Stores took over Jewel, which had held Osco Drug since 1961. Albertsons purchased American Stores in 1999. Following Albertsons' division in 2006, numerous independent Osco outlets were acquired by CVS Pharmacy. The Osco brand continues to be used for the pharmacy sections within Jewel-Osco and Shaw's-Osco stores.

Skaggs Drug Centers and American Stores

Main article: Skaggs Drug Centers

File:Osco Drug.JPG

A former Skaggs Drug Centers location in Missoula, Montana (2006)

In 1979, Skaggs Drug Centers acquired American Stores, which operated Acme Markets and Alpha Beta. After the acquisition, the combined company adopted the American Stores Company name and moved its headquarters to Salt Lake City, Utah.

At that time, American Stores was considerably larger, with 758 supermarkets, 139 drugstores, 53 restaurants, and 9 general merchandise outlets across nine states, compared to Skaggs' 241 stores. Despite retaining the American Stores Company name, leadership was dominated by Skaggs executives led by Leonard S. Skaggs Jr., commonly known as Sam Skaggs. In markets where both an Alpha Beta supermarket and a Skaggs Drug Center existed, these were often merged or expanded into combined food and drug stores under the Skaggs-Alpha Beta brand.

• In 1977, Skaggs Companies, Inc. amicably ended a partnership formed in 1969 with the Albertsons supermarket chain that had pioneered the initial food-drug combination stores under the Skaggs-Albertsons name.

To unify various subsidiary brands under a single nationally recognized banner, American Stores rebranded some Skaggs Alpha Beta locations as Jewel-Osco beginning in mid-September 1991. This change replaced the Skaggs-Alpha Beta name on all 76 stores across Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Arkansas. One year later, Albertsons purchased 74 Jewel-Osco outlets—some recently renamed from Skaggs-Alpha Beta—in Oklahoma, Florida, Arkansas, and Texas from American Stores. Ultimately, Albertsons acquired American Stores and its subsidiaries in 1999.

Skaggs Foundation

File:LJSKaggsFOUNDationP1010161.JPG

A commemorative lock named in their honor on the Caen flight at Devizes

The Skaggs Foundation was established by L.J. Skaggs and his wife Mary Skaggs.

See also

• Skaggs family

References

• The Skaggs Saga
• Skaggs Foundation website