Shaw’s Supermarkets is a wholly owned subsidiary of Supervalu. The Eden Prairie, Minnesota based Supervalu owns a wide range of banners, and Shaw’s together with its companion store Star Market are among them. Other Supervalu banners include, Albertsons, Farm Fresh, Acme markets, Jewel-Osco, Cub Foods, Shop ‘n’ Save and Save-A-Lot.

Ownership Changes

George C. Shaw opened a teashop in Portland, Maine in 1862 that was bought off by Brockton Public Market (BPM) in 1919. The BPM owner operated a group of grocery stores. George C. Shaw Company and BPM continued to grow and build warehouses in Brockton, Maine and Massachusetts. The BPM stores changed their name to Shaw’s Supermarkets Inc. in 1978.

The year 1983 saw the chain sold to J Sainsbury Plc., which was then UK’s largest supermarket chain. Shaw’s then bought Star Market, formerly owned by Investcorp in 1999. Sainsbury sold Shaw’s to Albertsons in 2004, which was later acquired in 2006 by Supervalu and hence ownership of the brand name changed once more. The Shaw’s chain of supermarkets has faced numerous store closings ever since its acquisitions by Supervalu. From more than 200 stores operating in 2006, the number has been reduced to 169 (for both Shaw’s and Star Market). To stay relevant, Shaw’s has remodeled a number of its stores. Shaw’s is based in West Bridgewater, Massachusetts.

Their total number of employees is estimated to be about 30,000 associates.

Number of locations: 156 Shaw’s stores and 13 Star Market stores. The distribution of the stores is as follows; 10 in Rhode Island, 19 in Vermont,22 in Maine, 34 in New Hampshire and 84 in Massachusetts (12 of which operate as Star Market).

Brands: Shaw’s and Star Market’s brands include Osco Drug, Shoppers Value, Market Fresh, Culinary Circle and Home Life.