Identity
American Stores' new logo, popularly known as the "teardrop" or "fish eye", was rolled out in 1961, effectively replacing the inconsistent "Acme Markets" or "Acme Super Markets" script logos of the 1950s; however, its implementation was not used throughout the chain. American Stores' distribution center, on US 30 in West Philadelphia, retained the gold script "Acme Super Markets" signage until its closure in 1993. The complex remained abandoned, complete with sign; the last Acme store in West Philadelphia had been sold in 1980.
The new Acme logo coincided with a building style known as "A-Frame." These stores were meant to compete with A&P, Food Fair, and Penn Fruit, all of which had trademarked architecture of their own. (Larger chains Safeway, Kroger, and Grand Union competed with Acme as well, but only in a few locations.) Most if not all Acmes built in the 1960s were a variant of this design. These could be adapted to main streets and shopping centers alike, and averaged 30,000 square feet (2,787 m2). Trademark features included a full peaked roof and signage that resembled the then-popular lava lamp, along with a standardized emergency exit location. The latter two elements were retained in Acme's 1970s prototype which succeeded many A Frame units. In turn, the A Frame's footprint was very similar to Acme's first standardized building model which had been rolled out in 1955.
Read more about this topic: Acme Markets
Famous quotes containing the word identity:
“All that remains is the mad desire for present identity through a woman.”
—Max Frisch (1911–1991)
“Let it be an alliance of two large, formidable natures, mutually beheld, mutually feared, before yet they recognize the deep identity which beneath these disparities unites them.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“The modern world needs people with a complex identity who are intellectually autonomous and prepared to cope with uncertainty; who are able to tolerate ambiguity and not be driven by fear into a rigid, single-solution approach to problems, who are rational, foresightful and who look for facts; who can draw inferences and can control their behavior in the light of foreseen consequences, who are altruistic and enjoy doing for others, and who understand social forces and trends.”
—Robert Havighurst (20th century)