GIANT Food Stores was founded in 1923 with the opening of a small meat market in Carlisle, Pa. The company expanded with a shopping center s opening in Lewistown, Pa., which allowed customers to purchase dry goods and perishables under one roof. In 1970, the local meat market began competing with larger regional and national chains with the acquisition of MARTIN s Food Markets in Maryland. With a workforce of more than 3,400 by 1980, the company entered into an agreement with Ahold, a food-retailing business that is based in the Netherlands. During the late 1980s through the mid-90s, a modernization project of GIANT Food Stores and MARTIN s Food Markets began with remodeling and expansion, which included interior upgrades, along with the arrival of in-store banks, pharmacies, Chinese kitchens, coffee shops and photo-processing centers. GIANT Food Stores maintains locations throughout Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York and Virginia, including its location in Landover, Md.