Publix #139 & CVS #535 - St. Pete Beach, FL

In this GTB Retail post, we will look at the Tampa Bay Area's oldest operating Publix (and a CVS) in St. Pete Beach, since today is the 56th anniversary of this Publix.

Publix #139

4855 Gulf Blvd, St. Pete Beach, FL - Dolphin Village

Publix #139 opened on June 29, 1967, and is the only major grocery store in St. Pete Beach after the Winn-Dixie (former Kash n' Karry/Sweetbay) on Blind Pass Road closed in 2018. The rest of the Dolphin Village shopping center with 2 floors was not added until 1984.

This Publix was expanded in 1989 from the Wing Store design to a modified 40N layout with the split vestibules. Publix #139 is 33,238 square feet.

This and the next 2 photos are courtesy of Yelp. This photo shows the original exterior look of Publix #139.

Welcome to Publix #139! Since you can see a mixture of Kiwi and Invigorate interior signage, that's because we are starting off this post of how this store would have looked like before the Bamboo remodel in 2014.

Aisle 2, as indicated by the United Kingdom flag, is home to international foods.

Looking towards produce from the meat and seafood departments.

This and the next photo are courtesy of Foursquare.

As a bonus, here is Publix #139 during the Invigorate to Bamboo remodel in 2014. This was taken from the seafood service counter.

After the Bamboo remodel in 2014, the exterior was repainted as well. The remaining photos are courtesy of Google Maps since I do not have my own set of store photos.

And then the exterior was repainted a second time in 2022. You can also see self-checkouts that Publix added the year before.

The entryway design is the only thing that resembles the new build 40N stores after the 1989 expansion.

Stepping inside, I can see clothing since this is a beachside Publix.

Shopping carts and even more beach gear!

The customer service counter is located in between the two entrances.

The deli is located on aisle 1 as a result of the 1989 expansion.

After the deli comes the bakery department.

Dairy is placed in an alcove after the store's bakery.

Aisle 6 has candies, cereals, coffee, and tea.

The meat department with the service counter seen to the left.

Laundry products are found on aisle 8 in addition to batteries, light bulbs, and school supplies.

A close-up of the seafood service counter in Publix #139.

Aisle 9 is the last aisle in the store to retain the striped terrazzo floor. The remaining part of the store has tile floors. 

Signage for aisles 10 to 12 as seen from produce. The aisle signs seen here are exclusive to the Bamboo package and is similar to Sienna except for a lighter woodgrain background and was used from 2014 to 2015.

At that time, Bamboo and Sienna coexisted with each other. Bamboo was Publix's mainstream interior, and Sienna was reserved as an upscale interior.

Aisle 12 is home to frozen foods. This is also the last aisle in Publix #139.

It can't be a Publix on the beach without some fishing bait!

Heading back up front, here are the self-checkouts that Publix added in 2021.

Aisle signage for aisles 7 to 4, viewed from one of the self-checkouts.

This concludes the Publix part of this post since there is also a CVS in this plaza.

Eckerd #85/CVS #535

4685 Gulf Blvd, St. Pete Beach, FL - Dolphin Village

CVS #535 opened in August 2004, and is 10,960 square feet. This location was a conversion from Eckerd #85 which opened in 1967 and closed in July 2004.

Aisles 1, 2, and the wine department have lower ceilings while the rest of the store has a higher ceiling. The sign at the ceiling transition says "food & beverages" but the last 6 letters are cut off by a sign for aisle 3.

This store was remodeled into the current CVS interior in 2018.

Here is one of the aisles in the lower ceiling, which is aisle 2. This aisle has breakfast, soups, and soda.

The front end at CVS #535 with 4 registers and a Kodak photo kiosk.

And to round out this post, a photo of CVS's exit doors taken during the nighttime.

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