Not too many people would take a group of out-of-towners to the grocery store for a special Christmas outing.

But Western Supermarket at Lane Parke isn’t just any store, which is why Lindsy Gardner introduced some visitors to it.

“They have such an amazing wine selection," Gardner, director of Mountain Brook’s Emmet O’Neal Library, said. She isn’t the first person to say that, as the Mountain Brook Western drew pilgrims from around the state seeking out vintages. Western opened the Mountain Brook supermarket in 1959 and moved into its new, larger Lane Parke location in 2016.

That’s why today’s news hit many particularly hard. The Birmingham-area grocery chain, which has operated for 70 years, announced it will sell its Lane Parke location in Mountain Brook, and its Rocky Ridge store in Vestavia Hills, to Publix, as it liquidates the company. The Highland Avenue Western Market will close “in weeks to come” as it is slated for redevelopment. The Western Supermarket-owned East Lake Village Market is for sale.

But the disappointment felt among customers wasn’t just limited to nostalgia for a name, but an ambiance they felt in the stores. Western, founded in 1948, was a long-time presence in the Birmingham market, tailoring its locations to the neighborhoods where they were situated, with familiar faces among the employees who stayed for years and knew their customers likes and dislikes. Back in 2014, an AL.com reporter spent the night at a Western Supermarket, recording her impressions.

This ruined my day, weekend, etc... The best wine shop and prices in town.



Western Supermarkets disbanding, Publix to acquire 2 locations https://t.co/7BDSm0YiCu — Katy Allen (@katywallen71) January 4, 2019

CEO Ken Hubbard, in a 2010 interview with The Birmingham News, said the company concentrated on customer service and building a particular identity for each store as a way of maintaining loyalty among shoppers, bucking the trends brought on by bigger competitors.

“One advantage that we have is that we are located right here,” he said at the time. “We know our customers and their wants, so we merchandise each store a little differently. We gear product selection to what we know works for each store. So our strength lies exactly in the fact that chains merchandise each store exactly the same.”

The shoppers responded, not just in Mountain Brook but in each location. One commenter on AL.com’s Facebook page said “Shopping at the Highland Avenue Western was worth the parking hassle.” Another stated simply, “I hate to hear this!”

Hubbard, who started out as a bagboy at the company, said today he and Western’s employees had "taken Western as far as we can.”

The neighborhood commitment wasn’t just in selection, but in support. Western regularly hosted its yearly Wine and Food Festival, which took place in 2018 at the Birmingham Zoo, the 29th edition of the event. The festival featured hundreds of wines, food vendors, and benefited the zoo, The Emmet O’Neal Library, the Junior League of Birmingham, the East Lake Initiative, and UAB’s Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Gardner said Western also sponsored the library’s speaker series.

“They truly were dedicated to the quality of the life in the community," she said.

Vince Schilleci, president of the Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce, also had good memories of shopping at Western, as well as the company’s community presence.

“They’ve given so much to so many,” he said. “It’s really quite a legacy.”