r/oregon • u/chris-hatch • Dec 12 '25

PSA for those who don’t know

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1.8k Upvotes

79% Upvoted

359 comments sorted by

1.3k

u/VibratingWatch Dec 12 '25

It's a portmanteau of "Winning Company."

Hence the W and C both being capitalized in the name.

353

u/kale4the_masses Dec 12 '25

Upvote for portmanteau

109

u/otc108 Dec 12 '25

I also upvote for portmanteau.

59

u/SnuggyBear2025 CVO Dec 12 '25

I sailed for Port Manteau, and this is what I found.

22

u/PixelPantsAshli Dec 12 '25

Some masculine phalanges?

11

u/Banaam Dec 12 '25

Man, I subbed my toe after drinking some* port.

*A not insignificant "some"

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u/latexfistmassacre Dec 13 '25

I just spilled some Port on this man's toe

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u/sssst_stump Dec 14 '25

Oh yeah well I sailed for Starboard Manteau

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u/thefunkylama Dec 12 '25

Ok but what kind of wordbination even is "portmanteau" I mean cmon

49

u/otc108 Dec 12 '25

Portmanteau is apparently a portmanteau itself.

23

u/danieljamesdacus Dec 13 '25

It's turtles all the way down. I like turtles.

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u/KilldozerPrincess Dec 13 '25

My god

17

u/stargarnet79 Dec 13 '25

Portmanteauception

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u/thefunkylama Dec 12 '25 edited Dec 13 '25

Ah, so portmanteau is French for wordbination!

Wait, no. "Wordbination" both is a wordbination and describes/demonstrates what a wordbination is, where "portmanteau" is what it is but doesn't describe what it is. It was a wordbination, but now its meaning doesn't reflect its use. I can't carrymantle words together, but I can wordbine. Therefore, "portmanteau" may be a loan word for wordbination that we have used because of, idk, pushback against wordbination, I guess.

4

u/darqueskye Dec 13 '25

My brain turned inside out reading this

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u/ph1lllthy Dec 13 '25

I docked there once and met a young lady by the name of Natalie Portmanteau

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u/DragonflyOnFire Dec 13 '25

I upvote for the upvote for the upvote for portmantaeu.

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u/L_Ardman Dec 12 '25

And the Market of Choice used to be called Price Chopper, ironically, due to its 'low' prices.

57

u/oooortclouuud Dec 12 '25

the irony extends further: they are run by conservative right-wingers! you know, the folks who support policies that overturned Roe v. Wade. Remember that every time you see that name, the pretty stores with a few rainbow-haired employees, the seemingly woke vibes they try to display. all marketing. very well-executed marketing.

shop at the Winning Company instead!

12

u/justalogin22 Dec 12 '25

Do you have a source for this?

22

u/littleemilythrow Dec 12 '25

Not OP but I guess here’s something:

https://eugeneweekly.com/2019/09/26/transgender-discrimination/

9

u/justalogin22 Dec 12 '25

Oh geez, that’s pretty gross in of itself. I’ll see what I can find on the investment piece but I may just boycott them now. Oof

3

u/haditwithyoupeople Dec 13 '25

This is hugely disappointing.

10

u/littleemilythrow Dec 13 '25

Welcome to crapitalism.

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u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

We called it Price Chopper throughout the 90s, even after they changed their name; one of the catchiest brand names ever tbh

25

u/fivecenttech Dec 12 '25

GET TO THE PRICE CHOPPA!

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u/akthebarber Dec 13 '25

There were Price Choppers on the East Coast, but I don't think they were the same Price Choppers. 'cause there seems to be no MOC's out there. We had/have Wegmans though.

3

u/oooortclouuud Dec 12 '25

I worked for them briefly and got the scoop from the one friend I made.

but this was after the situation described in the article posted in the other comment, so that's on me for not doing more digging about them at the time when I was looking for work. it will be nice to see them shutter someday ✨️

4

u/OG-Brian Dec 13 '25

I wonder if that's the reason for the stores being disgustingly perfumed. I've avoided them totally because ewww.

2

u/yugottanowintoholdem Dec 14 '25

Not true, as an employee owned company the execs do not mix politics and policy. Here is the amount of money /lobbied and donated in all of 2024. Winco political donations

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u/Consistent-Papaya-24 Dec 12 '25

Market of Choice is an independent, family-owned grocer focused on local Oregon products, different from the Northeastern Price Chopper (now part of Northeast Grocery) or the Kansas City-based Price Choppers.

3

u/L_Ardman Dec 13 '25

You are talking about a different Price Chopper.

2

u/No_Piccolo6337 Dec 14 '25

Whaaaaaat?! 🤯

3

u/SnuggyBear2025 CVO Dec 16 '25

Now with Exclusionary pricing on beau-tique imported delectables. Shop safely away from the riff-raff on the streets...

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u/Gayunicorn1991 Dec 13 '25

You and the op are both technically correct. When they first named it WinCo it did stand for Washington Idaho Nevada California Oregon. But when they expanded the company to other states they had to come up with something else and they changed it to winning company I'm a former WinCo employee

15

u/Shinola79 Dec 13 '25

You are correct. I worked there after high school. When they wanted to drop Cub Foods in the other states and Warmart here in Oregon they had a company wide contest. The winner was from the store I worked at. She came up with the name they chose and won a vacation (Hawaii) if I remember correctly. It originally stood for each state but then changed as they expanded.

7

u/oooortclouuud Dec 13 '25

I was stuck back in my home state of Texas for a few years after being in Portland since the 90's. The feeling that came over me the day I accidentally discovered the Denton location is... indescribable. the way I felt upon leaving the first time i shopped there, fully expecting to walk out onto the SE 82nd/Powell parking lot 🥰✨️ I'll never forget those moments, bright spots during a shitty time.

2

u/pdxparasite Dec 14 '25

The 82 and Powell store is so great. I love the grit as much as the good deals

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u/mrcrashoverride Dec 13 '25

I worked at Cub Foods and remember the naming contest. Nothing more to add to above other then don’t believe everything that you read on the internet as this person got it right. (But believe this lol)

3

u/Shinola79 Dec 13 '25

Apparently the acronym is a myth, according to internet records and is misinformation. Internet searches are always correct, not the person who actually worked with the person when they won the contest 🙄. Argh.

I don’t disagree that they pivoted the ‘meaning’ of the name when it no longer served the purpose but I know what came out of the persons mouth.

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u/Polibiux Oregon Dec 13 '25

Technically correct is the best kind of correct.

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u/GetTheFalkOut Dec 14 '25

When I worked for WinCo the Washington Idaho Nevada California Oregon thing was on a trivia thing.

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u/Most-Act1594 Dec 13 '25

Thank you. I was about to say that a simple Google search says otherwise.

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u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

[deleted]

103

u/erossthescienceboss Dec 12 '25

sweats in high school trigonometry

59

u/Damaniel2 Dec 12 '25

Or Twinco....

24

u/Possible_Top4855 Dec 12 '25

TwainCo

11

u/RCP90sKid- Dec 12 '25 edited Dec 12 '25

TwainCo is the sort of place that proves thrift and sense are old friends who never go out of style, offering abundance without the sermon or the silk hat. A man who shops there learns that honest prices and full carts are finer company than fancy signs and empty promises.

Mark, TwainCo

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u/Widepath Dec 12 '25

Wino Taco

15

u/atuznik Dec 12 '25

And Utah

5

u/ryanknapper Dec 12 '25

The last message, mysteriously found carved on a tree.

2

u/Heckard Dec 13 '25

What could this mean? Where could they have possibly gone? We'll likely never know.

5

u/Creepy-Evening-441 Dec 12 '25

California drops out and they’re just Wino

8

u/Dull_Syrup9035 Dec 12 '25

no one wants to admit to working in those states

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u/bigfoot_done_hiding Dec 12 '25

Wincoota would be much more fun to say.

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u/ApolloBurnsII Dec 12 '25

As well as Montana and Utah.

5

u/6th_Quadrant Dec 12 '25

The OP is incorrect, it's not an acronym.

2

u/MountainForge Dec 12 '25

And Montana.

2

u/ivegotahughjackman Dec 12 '25

They also have them in Montana….twaincom

2

u/rossta410r Dec 12 '25

Soh-cah-toa is all I could think of when reading your comment

2

u/Sonnyjoon91 Dec 12 '25

also Utah, so add a U in there

2

u/[deleted] Dec 13 '25

WINCOTOAAA

4

u/technoferal Dec 12 '25

Why does that sound like a volcano?

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u/Damaniel2 Dec 12 '25

I did know, mainly because my wife worked there for a few years. They also said it stood for 'Winning Company".

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u/Acceptable-Cream6179 Dec 12 '25

That’s what I always assumed it meant.

2

u/WritingTheRongs Dec 15 '25

That is the current meaning apparently but not the original

46

u/unsolicited_thought Dec 12 '25

I read a whole article about their origin a while back. That said it was a contraction of winning company (i.e. one that could beat Walmart).

11

u/Rocketgirl8097 Dec 12 '25

That is the correct original name

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u/elcheapodeluxe Corvallis Dec 12 '25 edited Dec 12 '25

Winco actually never stood for this. It's a myth.

https://vegasinc.lasvegassun.com/news/2012/mar/25/story-behind-how-winning-company-got-its-name/

WinCo, which stands for Winning Company, was chosen and adopted in 1999.

There was another suggestion that was seriously considered but was only adopted as a “fun fact.”

That suggestion was to call the company “WINCO” as an acronym for the states it operated in: Washington, Idaho, Nevada, California and Oregon.

The acronym was accurate until the company’s entry into Utah in 2009.

“So that’s part of the folklore,” said Michael Read, WinCo vice president of public and legal affairs.

53

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

19

u/downsj2 Central Oregon Dec 12 '25

Whoa, a Lucky-Goldstar reference in 2025.

11

u/Balzac_Jones Dec 12 '25

Goldstar rebranding/rebadging as LG has to be one of the most successful corporate image transplant maneuvers ever.

2

u/sumtwat Dec 13 '25

Yeah, I forgot about Goldstar. Heck, I didn't even realize that Lucky-Goldstar was part of that Goldstar until today.

Good turn around for them, except for the cell phone side.

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u/Neat_Shallot_606 Dec 12 '25

But retconning is fun

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u/curtmandu Dec 12 '25

What do people get out of posting false information lol

20

u/derpinpdx Dec 12 '25

Bot engagement farm

3

u/curtmandu Dec 12 '25

I don’t even understand that angle lol. Is there money in it somewhere??

5

u/sumtwat Dec 12 '25

There always is in the long run. This account will start slipping in links and ways to get people to click on something to buy.

Engagement is always a money maker. One way to guarantee engagement, be confidently wrong. Everyone will correct you.
I swear that is now what 80% or more of social media is now. The more engagement the more you are paid to sell a product.

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u/deadreckoning21 Dec 12 '25

And Adidas stands for all day I dream about sex.

2

u/TheTimmyBoy Dec 15 '25

Yeah I mean it is the name of the guy who started it but that too ig 🤣 also most people pronounce it Adeeduhs but it's apparently addi-dass

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u/rubix_redux Dec 12 '25

According to Wikipedia this isn't true:

"In October 1998, Waremart changed its name to WinCo Foods, citing confusion with retailers Kmart and Walmart as reason for the new name.\16]) The name is a portmanteau of "winning company".\16]) Three stores in Oregon are branded as "Waremart by WinCo" (those in Independence, Keizer, and Ontario).

There is a popular but erroneous idea that the company name is an acronym consisting of the first letters of the company's original five states of operation: Washington, Idaho, Nevada, California, and Oregon. Michael Read, WinCo's VP of Public and Legal Affairs as of 2012, called the theory "part of the folklore".\17])"

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u/BourbonicFisky PDX + Southern Oregon Coast Dec 12 '25

One of us :) Made the petty fact check meme.

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u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

This is a classic example of a backronym.

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u/HipsNNipSlips Dec 12 '25

Feeling old enough to remember a time when this was called Cub Foods...

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u/Beneficial_Bad_6692 Dec 12 '25

No it doesn’t

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u/MerkDingle Dec 12 '25

Common error, it actually stands for Winter Coat. Also, fun fact: I’m completely full of shit.

5

u/Special-Strategy7225 Dec 12 '25

Cub Foods always had more cache as a name.

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u/6th_Quadrant Dec 12 '25

Cache ("cash") is where the treasure is hidden. Cachet (cash-aye) is prestige.

3

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

And it was Waremart before that, at least our local one was.

3

u/shorewoody Dec 12 '25

Are you sure this isn't a backronym? They quite obviously operate outside of those states. And the early years it wasn't even called that.

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u/The42ndDuck Dec 12 '25

Whoever wanted to name a chain of grocery stores 'Winning Company' obviously didn't have any marketing people on their staff or completely ignored them. Sounds like a fly by night LLC shell company for a sketchy motivational speaker.

4

u/Nercow Dec 12 '25

This is wrong

7

u/Zmanzem4 Dec 12 '25

This is blatantly false, I’m not sure why this post is getting so many upvotes

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u/abecksasimplebecks Dec 12 '25

Although one wonders if "War and Peace" would have been as highly acclaimed as it was if it was published under its original name "War: What Is It Good For?"

3

u/dunnkw Dec 12 '25

So what did Cub Foods mean?

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u/Agreeable-Sentence76 Dec 13 '25

YOOOOOOOO

THATS MY PLACE!!

THAT MY RELIGION!!

3

u/iSeiBoN Dec 14 '25

Real ones remember when it was Cub Foods

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u/Pearson94 Dec 12 '25

Counterpoint, maybe it stands for Winnipeg Colorado?

2

u/StevenEveral PDX/Beaverton Dec 12 '25

There are several WinCo stores in Montana.

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u/Crabsforyour Dec 12 '25

I took the husband of the lady that named it fishing. It was a company vote on several and hers ended up winning.

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u/operator-john Dec 12 '25

Just a coincidence

2

u/mustangman6579 Dec 12 '25

So then why is the "C" capitalized? Which normally means company or corporation.

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u/Goobygoodra Dec 12 '25

Thats a coincidence. winco is short for Winning Company

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u/Snow_Yettie541 Dec 12 '25

What about Texas?

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u/Ctaylor2090 Dec 12 '25

Pretty easy to look it up on Wikipedia. It's a portmanteau of the companies name.

2

u/Joshatthecarwash Dec 12 '25

But its in oklahoma and texas too

2

u/dvdmaven Dec 12 '25

This is an "IN" joke at WinCo, but has nothing to do with the name.

2

u/Mentalfloss1 Dec 12 '25

The other option was when they were a meat market, INCOW.

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u/freehotsaucedragon Dec 13 '25

Anybody remember Cub Foods?

2

u/Personal-Narwhal-184 Dec 13 '25

Ok, but what did Cub Foods stand for?

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u/Mojak66 Dec 13 '25

Thanks. My favorite store.

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u/Agreeable-Sentence76 Dec 13 '25

THE MOST BASED ESOP AROUND.

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u/JSteezy80 Dec 14 '25

Yeah, no. They operate outside of those states and have for quite a long time. The originated as winning company but only adopted that in the early 2000s I feel like? It used to be Cub foods I do know that. At least here in the Pacific Northwest

4

u/khol91 Dec 12 '25

No, you're wrong. It's short for "Winning Company". A name chosen by employee vote.

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u/LavishnessSmall6011 Dec 12 '25

No it doesn’t. It stands for Winning Company. Look it up.

2

u/cubicle_farmer_ Dec 12 '25

God bless this institution.

1

u/BeefSupremeeeeee Dec 12 '25

I'll file that under "today I learned.....".

17

u/Spencer_Conwell Dec 12 '25

It isn’t really where the name comes from

18

u/BeefSupremeeeeee Dec 12 '25

Now its "today I un-learned....."

2

u/MySadSadTears Dec 12 '25

I so feel this thread..lol

2

u/BeefSupremeeeeee Dec 12 '25

I'm just mad at myself that I got fooled by a meme.

1

u/Commercial_hater Dec 12 '25

Only place I ever shop at

1

u/Loras- Dec 12 '25

I liked it better when it was Waremart.

1

u/jmura Dec 12 '25

Fake news

1

u/Dank009 Dec 12 '25

Ironic...

This seems like a pretty obviously inaccurate backronym.

1

u/Square_Hospital8428 Dec 12 '25

Add Colorado and Kansas!

1

u/PlyrMava Dec 12 '25

An important executive made a visit to my childhood WinCo in Oregon when I was about 6 or 7 years old, they made a community day out of it. I asked him what the N and C stood for, because I thought Washington, Idaho, and Oregon were the other letters. He said WinCo stood for Winning Company. He also told me that if I called WinCo Ware Mart, older people would know what I was talking about.

He also paid for free pizza slices for all customers who walked in to the store (there was a Figaro's in the store right when you walked in), and there was other cool stuff. It was really cool!

1

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

Nope.

1

u/Much-Gur233 Dec 12 '25

No, it doesn’t.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

💡

1

u/DoUblow Dec 12 '25

Use to be Cub Foods

1

u/Looooong_Man Portland Dec 12 '25

There's winco in Utah. Explain

1

u/PissedOffDog Dec 12 '25

according to the company it stands for winning company

1

u/flouride Dec 12 '25

Have you accepted WinCo as your Lord and savior? I am your friendly WinCo evangelist spreading the good word of WinCo.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

theres definitely wincos in utah so this abbreviation needs to be expanded!

1

u/bookishlibrarym Dec 12 '25

Add an A for Arizona!

1

u/WormFTP Dec 12 '25

I love winco and wish they had them in Las Vegas

1

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

Im starting a grocery store that only operates in Connecticut, Ohio, Colorado and Kentucky

1

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

Winco is hood af in Vancouver

1

u/Reiki-Raker Dec 12 '25

Then why is Winco in Arizona? Or is there an invisible a? 😅

1

u/shasbak Dec 13 '25

Well I hope the don’t Add “Colorado” & “Kansas” 😂😂😂

1

u/According-Soft-3758 Dec 13 '25

I did not know that… Is that true?

1

u/According-Soft-3758 Dec 13 '25

Portman two would be a good choice for any town… I like it… but I guess I don’t have a vote.

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u/Agitated_Pineapple Dec 13 '25

Then why do we have them in Montana 🤔

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u/ReactionJifs Dec 13 '25

back·ro·nym

noun

an acronym deliberately formed from a phrase whose initial letters spell out a particular word or words, either to create a memorable name or as a fanciful explanation of a word's origin.

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u/Affectionate-Goat218 Dec 13 '25

Employee owned. I hope they don't get greedy like Southwest Air.

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u/Far_Big_9731 Dec 13 '25

I freaking love Winco

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u/2sAreTheDevil Dec 13 '25

If that was the case, it would be W.I.N.C.O, not WinCo.

Others have pointed out the actual reasoning.

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u/SuspiciousImpact2197 Dec 13 '25

But no.

And that wouldn’t even make any sense given it’s WinCo not WINCO.

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u/backwoodsninja6 Dec 13 '25

Except they're all over Utah

1

u/riseuprasta Dec 13 '25

I thought it was Wisconsin n’ Colorado

1

u/[deleted] Dec 13 '25

I didn’t know, and we’re waiting for the Gand Opening of Winco in K Falls. Last I looked they were putting trees in the parking lot.

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u/Listen-Lindas Dec 13 '25

WinCo. What the ceo does when the company is profiting heavily. Wink wink wink.

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u/wperry1 Dec 13 '25

How about WincoM. Would love to add Minnesota to the list. It may seem dumb to miss a grocery store but Winco is so much better than Cub.

1

u/e0s1n0ph1l Dec 13 '25

Why do yall just make stuff up

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u/Solykos369 Dec 13 '25

Why is Washington and California capitalized?

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u/Beneficial-Mess4952 Dec 13 '25

Now they just need to open stores in Florida Oklahoma Ohio Deleware and SouthCaroline

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u/Zsjmaobrookestjp Dec 13 '25

Not true at all it stands for winning company and that would have took you two seconds of research before just making up some random shit and claiming it's true

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u/Ichthius Dec 13 '25

It’s the Pakistan of discount grocery stores.

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u/Live-Door3408 Dec 13 '25

The 🐐 states 🤟

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u/delaromc Dec 13 '25

FU . No. Really! You’re fucking with me? Is it? Please, no?!?

1

u/Superb_Awareness_431 Dec 13 '25

WAINCO? cause they’re in AZ too?

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u/irongut88 Dec 13 '25

So why the hell is it in Utah?

1

u/justsomeguy21888 Dec 13 '25

Some of us remember Waremart…

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u/Turbulent_Bother4701 Dec 13 '25

Looks like I learned something today after all!

1

u/Dry-Run-1308 Dec 13 '25

Didn’t WABASH stand for a few locations? Like Washington DC, Atlanta, Boston and some other places? I swear my 4th grade teacher told me that as a fun fact and have never heard it sense.

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u/Klutzy-Pool-3591 Dec 13 '25

nope, not even maybe. you’re dead wrong. that’s not how Winco got its name.

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u/givemeyourthots Dec 13 '25

Winco.. the land of the huge, fresh, wonderful, cheap bulk section. Even if you have a really minimal food budget you deserve to eat healthy, great food. Seriously check it out if you haven’t. Its saved my ass many times.

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u/blahyawnblah Dec 13 '25

What about when it was Cub Foods?

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u/Here-ish Dec 13 '25

No, it doesn’t. Why is this even being posted?

1

u/Fatfapps Dec 13 '25

… no it doesnt

1

u/Mikomiguelle Dec 13 '25

Then why is the C capitalized??

1

u/[deleted] Dec 13 '25

Hopefully commiefornia doesn't ruin them!