A&P Warehouse (Detroit, Michigan)

 historical layer / disappeared object  Add category

 Upload a photo

By the early 1920s, The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company had become the largest retailer in the U.S. with over 13,000 stores, and well ahead of second place FW Woolworth. In an effort to co-ordinate distribution and reduce costs, the company taking a lesson from Henry Ford, embarked upon a course of vertical integration, setting up its own manufacturing and distribution facilities. Starting with coffee roasting and grinding, the company expanded into baking, cold storage and produce.

The Detroit warehouse was one of 36 established throughout the country. Designed by Albert Kahn, it consisted of two buildings: a five story, 163,000 sq. ft. building constructed in 1924 and a two story, 70,000 sq. ft., produce building built in 1928. Most goods arrived by rail. The baking operation continued throughout the 1960s.