The sad, strange death of Fred Meyer: My hometown supermarket’s downward spiral

In 2019, I moved back to Portland, my hometown, to help with a family health situation.

I rented an apartment near where I grew up. I began doing my food shopping at the local Fred Meyer supermarket, which I remembered from when I was a kid.

When I saw the sign and the locked gate, it felt like an assault. It was another closing door. Another innocent pleasure snatched away.

It was fun to go back to “Freddy’s.” It was in a quiet, affluent neighborhood, so the store was always neat and clean.

They hired local high school kids to work there. As part of their job, they would always greet you, or ask if you needed help finding anything.

I found this incredibly charming. After living in Brooklyn and