For A & M Super Food Store owner Al Zaba, it has been a good run.

But the long-time Barrie grocer has decided to close his Yonge Street store, one of the city’s last independent grocery stores.

“The way the industry has gone, everyone and their stray cat are selling groceries,” Zaba said. “You go into Canadian Tire, Zellers, Shoppers Drug Mart and all the drug stores, and they are all selling groceries.”

Zaba, 79, said he has no worries about closing up after serving Simcoe County for almost 50 years.

He just feels Barrie has too many food outlets for the size of the population.

“The only sad part I can see is that there won’t be the independent business around,” he said. “They will be all franchises. They will all be controlled by the mega conglomerates. The days of the ma-and-pa businesses are coming to a great end.”

Zaba started in the grocery business in 1960 with A & M stores in Alliston, Angus, and in Barrie on Essa Road.

In 1985, he sold those locations to open A & M at the corner of Yonge Street and Huronia Road.

Zaba said the grocery store will remain open until everything is sold. “We are banking on the end of this month,” said Zaba. “But if we have to keep going, we will.”

Anything left will be donated to local charities.

Zaba said one of the things he regrets about closing his store is not being able to continue to support the many charities he has helped over the years, including the Salvation Army.

“They’ll have to find another supplier for their soup kitchen,” he said. “They have been getting goodies from us for more than 20 years.”

Zaba said it is also going to be tough to say goodbye to his employees, some of whom have worked for the store for 15 and 20 years.

“We’ve already had to say goodbye to some, as we cut down,” he said. “But because of the skills you get in the grocery business … they should have no problem finding more work.”

For the future, Zaba said he plans on staying in Barrie and will remain a member of the Kiwanis Club and Veterans Club of Barrie.

He also plans to do some travelling.

“I think I have fulfilled my venture that I set out to accomplish. I don’t think too many can say they started from scratch to accomplish what I have today. It was all done with hard work and dedication,” he said. “It’s time to hang up the saddle.”