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If you’ve lived in Tuscaloosa for any length of time, chances are you’ve made a trip or two to Piggly Wiggly. Maybe you stop in for a gallon of milk, pick up something for supper, grab a few steaks for the weekend, or just run in for a couple of things and walk out with a whole shopping cart.

Around here, Piggly Wiggly is more than just a grocery store. It’s part of the local landscape.

But have you ever wondered how the famous little pig made his way into Tuscaloosa?

The story actually begins more than a century ago, and the history behind one of America’s most recognizable grocery store names is pretty interesting.

Believe it or not, Piggly Wiggly wasn’t born in Alabama.

The first Piggly Wiggly opened its doors on September 6, 1916, in Memphis, Tennessee. Its founder was Clarence Saunders, a businessman who had an idea that would completely change the grocery shopping experience.

Back then, grocery shopping was different. Customers would give a list to a store clerk, who would walk around collecting the items while the customer waited.

Saunders thought there had to be a better way.

His idea was simple but revolutionary: Let customers walk through the store themselves, select their groceries from open shelves, put them in a shopping basket, and pay at a checkout counter.

Sound familiar?

Today, we wouldn’t think twice about shopping that way. But in 1916, it was a groundbreaking idea.

Piggly Wiggly helped introduce the modern self-service grocery store, and the company eventually expanded through franchising.

And as for that unusual name? Even today, the exact reason Clarence Saunders chose Piggly Wiggly remains something of a mystery. Perhaps he just wanted a name people wouldn’t forget. If that was his goal, he certainly accomplished it!

Fast-forward several decades, and the Piggly Wiggly name became familiar to grocery shoppers throughout the South.

But the story of the locally operated Piggly Wiggly stores serving Tuscaloosa and Northport today really begins in 1998.

That’s when Jimmy Welborn Sr. and his longtime friend and business partner, Ronnie Baker, opened their first Piggly Wiggly under the B&W Foods Inc. banner in Northport.

The original location occupied an older building that had previously housed an A&P grocery store.

Jimmy’s son, Jay Welborn, was attending the University of Alabama at the time and was interested in the grocery business.

In fact, his father took him to look at the old Northport building and suggested buying it.

Jay wasn’t exactly sold on the idea initially. He reportedly wasn’t impressed with the building, but his father saw something he didn’t.

Jimmy recognized an opportunity to serve a community that needed another grocery store.

And he was right.

The business began growing through good prices, word-of-mouth recommendations, and a commitment to the community.

In 2000, just two years after opening in Northport, B&W Foods expanded into Tuscaloosa with a second location on Greensboro Avenue.

That was followed by additional growth.

In 2008, the partners opened a new store on University Boulevard.

In 2009, another location opened on Culver Road, near Stillman College.

The company continued investing in neighborhoods where residents needed convenient access to groceries and everyday essentials.

In December 2020, another location opened in the Taylorville community on Bear Creek Road, in a building previously occupied by Vowell’s Fresh Market.

The store was extensively renovated before reopening under the Piggly Wiggly name.

And the expansion didn’t stop there. In September 2026, another Piggly Wiggly opened in the Five Points neighborhood, taking over the former Winn-Dixie location.

The newer location brought additional features, including a full-service bakery, deli, floral department, specialty meats, and a locally owned Tuscaloosa Drug Company pharmacy.

That’s quite a transformation from an old grocery store building in Northport!

One of the most interesting parts of the Piggly Wiggly story in West Alabama is the family connection.

Jimmy Welborn Sr. helped establish the business with Ronnie Baker, and his son, Jay, grew up learning the grocery business.

Unfortunately, Jimmy passed away in 2010 after battling cancer for 31 years.

His passing was a tremendous loss for the family and the business.

Jay continued working alongside Ronnie Baker, carrying forward the business his father helped build.

That commitment to keeping the family business moving forward has become an important part of the company’s story.

In January 2026, Jay Welborn received another significant honor when the Alabama Grocers Association named him its 2026 Retailer of the Year.

The recognition highlighted his leadership, commitment to employees, grocery store operations, and involvement in the communities served by the company.

It’s an impressive accomplishment for a business that began with one old grocery store building in Northport.

There’s something comforting about having a neighborhood grocery store.

It’s where you run into somebody you haven’t seen in months, where employees sometimes recognize regular customers, and where you can pick up something for dinner without driving across town.

In an age when large national supermarket chains and online grocery delivery services dominate much of the industry, locally operated grocery businesses still have an important place in communities like Tuscaloosa.

Piggly Wiggly has managed to combine a nationally recognized grocery name with local ownership, familiar faces, and a connection to the people it serves.

And that’s a big deal.

Think about it.

A grocery store concept that started in Memphis in 1916 eventually became part of everyday life in Tuscaloosa.

The local story began with two business partners willing to take a chance on an old grocery store in Northport. Nearly three decades later, that investment has grown into a successful West Alabama grocery operation.

Not bad for a little pig!

So the next time you’re walking through the aisles at your neighborhood Piggly Wiggly, remember there’s a lot more history behind that familiar name than you might think.

It’s a story about innovation, family, hard work, community investment, and recognizing an opportunity when it comes along.

And here in Tuscaloosa, we certainly appreciate a good hometown success story.

Here’s to Piggly Wiggly, the Welborn family, and the people who keep West Alabama’s grocery stores running.

And if you happen to see Jay Welborn around town, you might just tell him congratulations. That’s a pretty impressive legacy to carry forward.

Roll Tide!