Cala Foods
Cala Foods was a San Francisco-based supermarket chain that operated from 1947 until its final store closed in 2011.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Cala Foods was a regional supermarket chain founded in San Francisco in 1947 by seven brothers from the Cala family. The business grew from a local grocery operation into a Bay Area chain serving neighborhoods in San Francisco and, at its broader extent, communities as far south as Santa Clara County and as far north as Marin County. It operated in a competitive conventional-supermarket market and was known for emphasizing neighborhood accessibility and extended opening hours. The chain’s development included several important changes in ownership and corporate structure. In 1973, Cala Foods acquired the QFI supermarket chain. During the middle of the 1970s, Cala merged with Bell Markets, another San Francisco grocery business founded by Dominick Bell and his two brothers. The resulting relationship made Cala Foods and Bell Markets sister chains, with the two names continuing to be used across parts of the Bay Area. Cala Foods was associated with several retail innovations for its market. It was described as the first supermarket chain in San Francisco to remain open around the clock and as one of the early supermarket operators in the United States to introduce checkout scanning technology. These practices reflected the chain’s effort to serve urban customers at different hours and to modernize store operations. In 1988, Yucaipa Companies purchased the Cala Foods chain. In 1994, Cala became a division of Ralphs Grocery Company after Ralphs merged with Yucaipa. This placed the San Francisco chain within a larger grocery-company structure while preserving the Cala and Bell identities in local markets. A later divestiture reshaped the chain’s final years. In August 2006, Ralphs agreed to sell 11 of 13 Cala and Bell stores to Harley DeLano, a former manager of the chain. DeLano retained the right to use the Cala and Bell store names for the transferred operations, while Kroger retained ownership of the names. In January 2007, DeLano Retail Partners took control of all but one Cala Foods location and immediately converted those stores to the DeLano’s IGA banner. DeLano’s IGA subsequently encountered financial difficulties. By late 2010, the company had announced that most of its locations would close. The remaining Cala-branded location was a store at California and Hyde Streets on San Francisco’s Nob Hill. That store was operated by Kroger and was initially expected to close at the end of 2010, but it remained open for approximately another year. It closed on December 1, 2011, ending Cala Foods’ retail operations. The Nob Hill building later continued as a neighborhood retail site. After concerns that the distinctive structure might be demolished, Trader Joe’s opened a store there in 2012. Cala Foods therefore survives primarily as a historical San Francisco supermarket name rather than as an active retail business.
History
Cala Foods began in San Francisco in 1947, when seven brothers from the Cala family established the supermarket business. The chain expanded as a local grocery operator and later broadened its presence across the Bay Area. Its operating territory eventually extended from San Francisco to areas as far south as Santa Clara County and as far north as Marin County. The company’s first major documented acquisition came in 1973, when it purchased the QFI supermarket chain. Cala subsequently merged with Bell Markets in the mid-1970s. Bell Markets had been founded in San Francisco in the 1940s by Dominick Bell and his two brothers. After the merger, Cala Foods and Bell Markets operated as sister supermarket chains, retaining their respective local identities. Cala developed a reputation for operational experimentation. It was identified as San Francisco’s first supermarket chain to operate continuously for 24 hours and as one of the early supermarket chains in the United States to use checkout scanners. These features helped distinguish the business in an urban grocery market where convenience and transaction efficiency were important competitive factors. Ownership changed in 1988, when Yucaipa Companies acquired Cala Foods. In 1994, Cala became a division of Ralphs Grocery Company as part of Ralphs’ merger with Yucaipa. The change connected Cala to a larger regional grocery organization and eventually to Kroger through Ralphs, while the Cala and Bell names remained visible in San Francisco-area retailing. In August 2006, Ralphs reached an agreement to sell 11 of 13 Cala and Bell stores to Harley DeLano, who had previously managed the chain. The transaction allowed DeLano to use the Cala and Bell store names for the transferred operations, but Kroger retained ownership of the names. In January 2007, DeLano Retail Partners assumed control of all but one Cala Foods store and rebranded the transferred locations as DeLano’s IGA. The successor business later struggled financially. By late 2010, most DeLano’s IGA locations were expected to close. The one remaining Cala-branded store was not transferred in the same way: the California and Hyde Streets location on San Francisco’s Nob Hill continued to be operated by Kroger. Although it had initially been scheduled to close at the end of 2010, it stayed open for another year. The final Cala Foods store closed on December 1, 2011. The building later received a new retail use when Trader Joe’s opened a store there in 2012, following concerns that the distinctive structure might otherwise be demolished. Cala Foods is now a defunct supermarket brand whose historical significance lies in its long San Francisco presence, its relationship with Bell Markets, and its early adoption of extended hours and checkout-scanning technology.
- 2012
Former Nob Hill site reopens under Trader Joe's
[1]Trader Joe's opens a store in the former Cala Foods building after concerns about possible demolition.
- 2011
Final store closes
[1]The remaining Cala Foods location on San Francisco's Nob Hill closes on December 1.
- 2007
Stores convert to DeLano's IGA
[1]DeLano Retail Partners takes control of all but one Cala Foods store and rebrands the transferred locations.
- 2006
Most stores are sold to Harley DeLano
[1]Ralphs agrees to sell 11 of 13 Cala and Bell stores to former manager Harley DeLano, while Kroger retains the brand-name ownership.
- 1994
Cala becomes a Ralphs division
[1]Cala becomes a division of Ralphs Grocery Company after Ralphs merges with Yucaipa.
- 1988
Yucaipa Companies acquires Cala Foods
[1]Yucaipa Companies purchases the Cala Foods chain.
- 1975
Merger with Bell Markets
[1]Cala Foods merges with Bell Markets during the mid-1970s, creating a sister-chain relationship between the two local supermarket banners.
- 1973
Acquisition of QFI
[1]Cala Foods acquires the QFI supermarket chain.
- 1947
Cala Foods is established
[1]Seven brothers from the Cala family establish the supermarket business in San Francisco.
Products and positioning
A neighborhood-oriented conventional supermarket chain serving San Francisco and the wider Bay Area, differentiated historically by extended operating hours and early adoption of checkout scanning.
Supermarket retail · 1947
Cala Foods supermarkets
Cala Foods operated full-service neighborhood supermarkets offering the standard assortment associated with conventional grocery retail, including fresh food, packaged groceries, refrigerated and frozen products, and everyday household necessities. The chain’s principal offering was its physical store network rather than a separately identified branded product range.
Brand decisions
2011
Close the final Cala Foods storeStrategyBackground
The remaining Cala Foods location on San Francisco's Nob Hill continued after other stores had been transferred or rebranded.
Action taken
Kroger closed the store on December 1, 2011.
Aftermath
Cala Foods ceased operating as a supermarket chain. Trader Joe's later opened in the building in 2012.
2007
Rebrand transferred stores as DeLano's IGAStrategyBackground
DeLano Retail Partners assumed control of nearly all remaining Cala Foods locations after the 2006 transaction.
Action taken
The company immediately changed the transferred stores to the DeLano's IGA identity.
Aftermath
The Cala Foods name remained only at the Kroger-operated Nob Hill store, which later closed in 2011.
2006
Sell most Cala and Bell stores to Harley DeLanoM&ABackground
Ralphs reorganized its ownership of the local Cala and Bell store network.
Action taken
Ralphs agreed to sell 11 of 13 stores to former manager Harley DeLano while Kroger retained ownership of the Cala and Bell names.
Aftermath
The transferred stores moved into DeLano Retail Partners and were subsequently converted to the DeLano's IGA banner.
1975
Merge with Bell MarketsM&ABackground
Cala Foods and Bell Markets were both established San Francisco supermarket operators.
Action taken
The companies merged during the mid-1970s and subsequently operated as sister chains.
Aftermath
The Cala and Bell names continued to be used across the Bay Area grocery market.
1973
Acquire QFI supermarket chainM&ABackground
Cala Foods pursued expansion within the Bay Area supermarket market.
Action taken
The company acquired the QFI supermarket chain.
Aftermath
The acquisition became part of Cala Foods' subsequent regional growth before its later merger with Bell Markets.
Sources1 sources
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