Corner Grocermat (1959)
Tuesday, March 31, 2009 at 9:33AM ;)
The January 4, 1959 edition of Closer Than We Think illustrated the corner grocermat of the future. The modular/mobile nature of the whole idea is reminiscent of the "farm to market" trains featured in Magic Highway, U.S.A. They certainly could have inspired the "mobile malls" of 1981 we looked at a while back.
Here's an idea to make marketing faster and easier! As proposed by the Clark Equipment Company of Battle Creek, Michigan, it involves the use of self-service "food banks" that would be preloaded with bread, milk, soups, etc., at the wholesaler's and then hauled to handy neighborhood locations for the convenience of retail shoppers.
The idea might be further developed to enable the housewife to drive around an oval arrangement of such preloaded display sections and pick out what was needed. A clerk would put the desired groceries on a moving belt which would move when the auto did, so that the purchases would wind up at the checkout counter at the same time the driver did. They'd be packaged and paid for - all with the customer still seated at her wheel.
Thanks to Tom Z. for this color edition of Closer Than We Think.
Previously on Paleo-Future:
Reader Comments (3)
Laziness sure was important back then, huh?
Mmmm, nothing like fresh fruit and veggies that have simmered in a sea of car exhaust fumes for several hours!
We have something better! You can shop from home online for Groceries at Hy-vee. Then when you pull up at the store they've got the groceries all sacked up and put em in your trunk.
Or you can just have them delivered. Who needs a conveyor belt? They were sure impressed with the conveyor belt. It was going to be every where....oooh... conveyor belts.