The Corner Grocers of Bennington

Similar to the posts I did in Worcester, let's take a look at the various corner grocers of Bennington! Since these are small stores and I mostly have only exterior pictures, I figured it would be best to combine them all into one post. Bennington seems to have had a rich history of corner stores, and even as grocery stores got larger and moved out to the suburban neighborhoods, these corner stores remained (some have even expanded and are still going strong). Let's get started...

Yott's Market
Opened: 1984

Owner: Shefali Patel

Previous Tenants: unknown

Cooperative: none

Location: 600 Gage St, Bennington, VT

Photographed: August 8, 2021

Yott's is just a couple blocks over from Henry's, but it's more of a convenience store than a substantial grocer like Henry's is.

Willy's Variety
Opened: 1946

Owner: Edwin Maroney

Previous Tenants: A&P

Cooperative: none

Location: 300 Gage St, Bennington, VT

Photographed: August 8, 2021

And a couple more blocks away from that is Willy's Variety, which actually was an early A&P before becoming Willy's in 1946.

Elm Street Market
Opened: 2011

Owner: Ted Cutsumpas

Previous Tenants: Caslin's

Cooperative: none

Location: 251 Elm St, Bennington, VT

Photographed: August 9, 2021

Elm Street Market is quite different, since it's only actually been in business since 2011 though it does appear to have been various corner stores previously. It's newly renovated and is more of an eatery than a grocer these days, with the deli and grab-and-go foods being the focus.

The Corner Market
Opened: unknown

Owner: unknown

Previous Tenants: unknown

Cooperative: none

Location: 150 Benmont Ave, Bennington, VT

Photographed: August 9, 2021

Corner Market definitely tells it like it is: it's a market and it's on the corner. It doubles as a laundromat, though, and has grocery basics along with beer and wine and fried chicken and other fast foods.

Powers Market
Open: 1883-2026

Owner: Lani DePonte-Disorda

Previous Tenants: none

Cooperative: none

Location: 9 Main St, North Bennington, VT

Photographed: August 9, 2021

Heading out of Bennington to North Bennington about four miles to the northwest. Powers Market has been here in this imposing building since 1883, but sadly, the store closed in early 2026 and is now in the process of transitioning to new ownership. It was closed the day I was in the area, but it was also more of a restaurant than a grocer. I got one picture of the inside through the front door, and you can see it's more of a sit-down deli than a convenience store or general store.

And that brings us to the end of our look at the corner grocers of Bennington! Before leaving this part of the state and heading north to the Burlington area, we're going to stop by Manchester about 20 miles north of Bennington. More on that tomorrow!