The store at 3818 Devine St. been a convenient and affordable stop for local residents. (Photos by Chelsea Gourdine/Carolina News & Reporter)
A longtime Devine Street staple is closing its doors for good.
The Piggly Wiggly will serve its last customers in the near future. Darrell Miller, the store’s owner, posted to social media on Monday that he wasn’t renewing the store’s lease.
“I submit our sincere thanks to the residents of the surrounding communities and the Greater Columbia area for your steadfast and generous support over the past fifty years,” Miller said.
The store is known for its unique products and affordable prices. Robert Johnson, a shopper, said its wide range of products and low prices made him a frequent visitor.
“I hate it – I really do,” Johnson said. “I’m just used to having it around for so long, so it makes a big difference. Wherever else I end up going, it would be different.”
The first Piggly Wiggly was founded in Tennessee in 1916 as the first self-service grocery store in the United States, allowing customers to select products themselves. Vann Lott has shopped at the Devine St. location since it opened more than 50 years ago, but more frequently over the past four years due to its convenience.
“One of the folks that works here was taught by my wife in middle school,” Lott said. “Makes it even a little more personable place to come.”
Once prominent in South Carolina, the chain has slowly declined since its parent company Fleming filed for bankruptcy in 2003. Many of the stores have since been bought out or rebranded. The Devine Street location is one of two remaining stores in the Columbia area.
“Piggly Wiggly was a staple here in the Columbia area (when I was) growing up,” Lott said. “I had one right across the street from my house. Hate to see the end of an era.”
Columbia has one remaining store, on North Main Street.
Jason Davis, a shopper in the Devine Street store for the past 30 years, is now exclusively shopping there until it closes. Davis said the store’s employees made it special.
“It feels less corporate,” Davis said. “It has more of a small business feel to it, a local feel. They sell products here that they don’t sell at a lot of other places.”
The closing brings an end to Miller’s 57-year career in the grocery business, including the last 11 as owner of the Devine Street location.
“It has been a distinct honor to be the owner of this business and to work in this place for the past eleven years,” Miller said. “I would not have chosen anywhere else to finish the journey. Thank you for the privilege.”
Store owner Darrell Miller has yet to release a closing timeline or procedures.
The store’s staff, the “Pig People,” create a welcoming environment for shoppers.
The Pig’s low prices have made it a fixture on the local scene.
ABOUT THE JOURNALISTS
Sam Stroup
Stroup is a senior journalism major at the University of South Carolina. He’s from Charleston, S.C. He has worked for the student-run Daily Gamecock for three semesters and serves as the beat writer for club sports. He also has been a freelance sportswriter for the Lexington County Chronicle. He plans to pursue a career in sports journalism.
Chelsea Gourdine
Gourdine is a junior dual-major student in Visual Communications and Information Science at the University of South Carolina’s Honors College. She previously worked as a social media and marketing intern for the South Carolina State Fair and now serves as a photographer for The Daily Gamecock and a designer for Garnet & Black.
