The Importation of the American Supermarket Model to Israel, 1957-1967

This article traces the story of the importation of the American supermarket to Israel between the late 1950s to the late 1960s. The public debates over the adoption of this retail model went beyond economic and commercial aspects to include political, social, and class struggles among different groups in Israeli society, illustrative of their heterogeneous complexity at the time. The appearance of the supermarket in Israel was both symbolic and real. For many, it symbolized progress and modernization, values originating in ‘American Consumerism’ in the framework of the Cold War to demonstrate the advantages of the American way of life. The supermarket model was established through two main entities: initially by the foreign-owned private company Shufersal and through the Histadrut Corporation and its government-supported chain of food stores. The establishment of the supermarket marked a significant change in the Israeli retail food trade and consumption and management patterns. These included self-service, frozen food products, weekly specials, background music, consumer benefits, attractive packaging, advertising which offered a ‘shopping experience’ that was new to Israel at the time.