Why Meijer Stores No Longer Use That Second Floor

If you've ever been to older Meijer stores like the ones at Alpine and 28th/Kalamazoo, you've likely looked up while checking out and seen an entire second floor. My whole life, I've wanted to go upstairs and get an "aerial view" of the store, purely because I want to go somewhere off the beaten path.

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What surprises many post-2000 shoppers is that this mezzanine used to be more than office space: it was (and still is) an essential part of the Meijer shopping experience, just not how many of us realize.

Tommy McNeill, Townsquare Media

Meijer's Second Floor Marketplace

To learn more about the second floor, I spoke with Erin Cataldo, Meijer's External Communications Manager. According to her, starting in the late 1960s and early 70s, many locations were built with this second floor to "feature things like beauty salons, barbershops, shoe repair shops, dry cleaners, and cafeterias." At one point, Meijer even had a deal with McDonald's. 

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Now, if you read that and look at the photo above, you'll likely notice that what used to be on the second floor was moved to the main floor. This was intentional. Cataldo added that in 1973, as Meijer expanded and changed its store designs, it moved away from the two-floor format. You can view photos of these past stores here.

Meijer still offers vendor services like haircuts, banking, eating, and more, just like in the 70s. The difference is that by the 2000s, all of this had moved down a level. It made everything more accessible and part of the shopping experience, rather than separate from it.

Today, these former vendor spaces serve internal purposes like office space and employee breakrooms.