‘Bunni’ Goldstein, 89; Founded Grocery Chain With 4 Brothers
Bernard “Bunni” Goldstein, 89, one of the five brothers who founded the grocery chain known as the Boys’ Markets, died Thursday in Los Angeles of causes associated with aging.
Born in Ipswich, Mass., he grew up in the Boyle Heights area of East Los Angeles with his siblings and their widowed mother. To support the family, the brothers began selling oranges from a corner stand and peddling groceries door-to-door from a pushcart.
Goldstein was still literally a “boy” when older brothers Joseph, Max and Edward started the first grocery store on Telegraph Road in 1924. Neighbors began referring to the shop as “the Boys’ Market,” and the name stuck. A second store was opened in 1931, and by the time the family sold the chain in 1986, they owned 45 stores.
Goldstein dropped out of high school at 16 to work full time in the store. During the Depression, working up to 20 hours a day, he often sacked out on sugar sacks in the back room.
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