As food shopping and grocery stores have become the center of so much of our pandemic life we thought it would be great to replay our pilot episode. In this episode we’ll look at the history of food retailing in America, how self-service replaced counter service, the way a couple of notable innovators changed how we shop and discuss how today’s retail landscape resembles a florescent-lit Hunger Games minus the bloody sword wounds and gratuitous sex.

Plus what we discovered in our researching and writing is that the issues people are talking about today in regards to Amazon's ever growing power were on the minds of Americans dating back to the 19th century. In other words while the scope and pace of change is new the basis for change remains eerily familiar.

Of course today we can buy groceries everywhere, even while wearing nothing but dirty underwear sitting at home. But not that long ago buying food at gas stations or drug stores was something new. Add in mass merchants, bodegas and corner stores and of course  blessed supermarkets too and in case you didn't figure it out before you'll now know why we call our show Cornucopia.