Bigg’s encountered financial difficulty in the 2000’s, went thru some merger and ownership changes and closed its Eastgate store in 2007. But its example lives on in every city in the country.
Key Details of the Eastgate Location:
Total Size: The building was part of a larger complex known as Bigg’s Place Mall, which spanned over 400,000 square feet in total. The Bigg’s store itself acted as the massive anchor, typically cited as approximately 225,000 square feet with over 40 checkout lanes.
The "Hypermarket" Era: Because of its size, employees famously wore roller skates to navigate the aisles and stock shelves more efficiently.
Current Occupant: Today, the space is home to Jungle Jim’s International Market, which opened its Eastgate location in 2012. Jungle Jim's currently occupies roughly 215,000 square feet of that original footprint.
The success of the Eastgate Bigg's led to the opening of even larger locations, such as the one at Forest Fair Mall, which was approximately 245,000 square feet.