Services Set for Macey’s Founder

ELLIOT ZWIEBACH

SALT LAKE CITY — Funeral services are scheduled here Saturday for Walt Lincoln Macey, founder of Macey’s, who died Monday of natural causes. Macey, 90, had been in poor health for the past couple of years, his family said.

The 10 Macey's stores were sold to Associated Food Stores here in 1999. Flags at the stores were flown at half-mast on Tuesday. Neil Berube, chief operating officer of Associated, called Macey “a pioneer of the grocery industry in Utah.”

Macey opened his first store, called Save-A-Nickel-Market, in 1947 with partner Dale Jones. The number of stores had grown to four when the partners split up the company in 1963 because of a dispute over Sunday openings, which Jones favored and Macey opposed. Macey ended up with a single store, which he renamed Macey's, and grew the company with new stores and acquisitions. He retired in 1985 and turned the business over to his son, Ken Macey.

The elder Macey served on the boards of the Salt Lake Grocers Association, the Utah Retail Grocery Association, the National Grocers Association and the National Association of Retail Grocers of the U.S. He is survived by three sons and two daughters; 23 grandchildren; 31 great-grandchildren; his second wife; two step-sons; four step-daughters; 20 step-grandchildren; and six step-great-great grandchildren.

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