In 1913, a small food shop opened in Essen, Germany. The entrepreneurial effort was spearheaded by Anna Albrecht, and her sons took over the initiative in 1948. Karl and Theo Albrecht got to work nurturing a concept that was aimed at keeping prices low for grocery shoppers. The name Aldi, which came in 1962, results from the shortening of Albrecht Discount, which was the store's original name.
The pioneer of the mall pretzel was Hot Sam Pretzels, but now it's little more than a piece of nostalgic trivia. When it comes to mall pretzels, Hot Sam was the trendsetter. Founded in 1967, the chain offered mallgoers plain pretzels, ones with mustard, or sweet cinnamon sugar-covered versions for a quick snack on the go. By the 1980s, they also came with savory toppings like cheddar, nacho, or cream cheese, and sweet option additions like hot fudge and strawberries.
(A baby sand shark named Sinatra eventually had to be removed, for bullying his tank mates.) Across its nine floors, the store boasted twenty-three escalators, trimmed in goatskin leather. But construction delays meant that they didn't start revolving until the final moments before the grand-opening party, and new escalators need at least two weeks of use to stretch out their creaks.