Looking back on 50 years of history at Aurora Mall

The Clarke family passed a major milestone this week, celebrating 50 years of owning and running a “one-stop shop” grocery store and crediting the community for much of their continued success.
Jim and LaVonne Clarke sat down this week to reflect on a decision that would change their lives back in 1974, when the Market Basket Supermarket in Aurora came up for sale.
“We had the store in Central City where three brothers ended up being in the same building,” Jim recalled. “We were looking for another place and this one came open through the co-op food supplier. The whole thing started rather quickly and I think it was done within 30 days.”
Jim and LaVonne moved almost immediately to Aurora, where Jim would manage the new store while brother Joe ran the Central City store and John helped with the books at both operations.
The location on Highway 14 offered 10,000 sq. ft. of space, which Jim said looking back was adequate at the time. He liked the “mall concept” he had worked with in Central City, however, and soon began looking for products and services to offer, which eventually required more space.
“The one-stop shopping was a new fad at the time where people could get more things at one time,” Jim recalled. “It worked out well because we had a super display of greeting cards, and people always wanted cooking utensils and stuff that went along with the cooking and cleaning. You are always looking at the space, moving things around and then re-merchandising, dropping something or adding something based on what’s selling and what’s not.”
Over the years an in-house pharmacy was added, as well as a deli, variety store, hardware line (initially Tru Value and later ACE), jewelry line, bulk foods, liquor, as well as a line of health (organic) foods.
In 1985, Jim hired Richard Schaffert to expand the structure to 30,000 sq. ft, a footprint he said hasn’t changed much since that time. He later purchased the Vernon Higby house on the southeast edge of the property to add more parking space.
The exterior appearance changed over time, as did the name. 
“It started as Jim’s Food Mart and at some point we started making the Aurora Mall print bigger than Jim’s,” he recalled. “It took a long time because everybody knew it for so long as Jim’s.”
The local entrepreneurs recalled lots of fond memories from their years at the store, with Jim admitting that it became his “home away from home,” especially after the store followed the lead of the Safeway in Central City to open seven days a week.
“We had a lot of fun,” Jim said. “The mothers would bring their kids in and so we’d have a Santa there and just little extra things so all the little kids would come in. My fondest memory is just carrying out a lot of groceries. I liked to carry things out for people and open their door.”
LaVonne, who helped in various roles over the years, recalled some of the special events and promotions which added another element of fun.
“We had Western Days once with all kinds of animals,” she said. “We’d do different promotions to have fun and bring people in, which was the whole idea. I got to do a lot of samples and demos through the years and I just remember it was fun for the kids, fun to meet people. You know, just knowing the kids and the people through the school was so much fun. The cheerleaders used to work for Jim and they’d come in in their outfits, just vibrant young people that just had such a sense of energy. It was fun for the whole community.”
Jim and LaVonne are long retired now, having passed the baton to son Peter, who lives in Crete where he owns and operates the grocery store there. 
They enjoy visiting their children, including James in Aurora, Ill., Amie in Arizona, Anthony in Lincoln, Peter in Crete and Patrick in California, as well as 15 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Fourth generation
Peter Clarke now owns the Aurora Mall, representing the fourth generation in the family grocery business. Jim’s grandfather bought a grocery store in Broken Bow back in 1919 and ran it for six years. Jim’s father (also known as Jim) was a manager for Safeway at several locations before starting his own store in Central City. Jim followed those same footsteps, as did Peter, who took the reins in 2013 and reflected this week on how growing up in the business impacted his career choice.
“It was truly a family business in that if Dad needed help my siblings and I were voluntold to show up,” he said. “We started early on learning little parts of the whole picture and what it looks like to be in or own a business, little by little.”
Peter remembers picking up boxes at the age of 10 or 11 as associates stocked the shelves, eventually graduating to bagging groceries and helping in the produce department along with Kim Moellenberndt, who joined the staff in 1975 and returned in 2020 after a time in Harvard. For a time Peter took over ordering for the dairy while his father looked for a new department manager.
“These and several other experiences all involving the business and my Dad I’m so grateful for as they did a lot to teach and instill in me the desire to always have a good work ethic, learn the value of ‘sweat equity’ and to appreciate the importance and the reward of working hard though whatever challenge or obstacle is before you to truly earn your way in this life.”
Peter observed that the grocery business changed a lot during his father’s tenure, and continues to evolve.
“Like all industries, with technology always evolving and allowing us to better serve customers, there have been the additions of things like self-checkouts, digital coupons, along with the potential greater outreach and more targeted advertising via email and social media to extend ads and deals directly to the hands of customers and potential new shoppers,”  he explained. “We extend some rather expansive food shows yearly to constantly be learning and looking for new and better ways to do things.”
Driving to Aurora frequently to help oversee operations here has been rewarding for Peter as a way to reconnect with the place where it all started for him.
“To be back in the store in Aurora where I first learned and the interest in business was planted for me is like it’s all come full circle,” he said. “Fifty years is no doubt a long time and it’s definitely been an incredible adventure to grow up in the business.
“I can’t imagine how much more of all that my father has been through and regardless, have always seen him as determined, persevering and eager to go to work, always enjoying being there for his customers and connecting to countless people in this community and some surrounding small towns. Personally, I’d like to say I’m grateful to both my parents for the great example they provided through their never wavering dedication to the business, the Aurora community and our family alike through all the ups and downs that being in business was for each of them over the last 50 years.”
“It’s a great community,” Lavonne concluded. “We were very fortunate to come here. All our kids were born here and we’re very thankful to the community. It’s been a blessing.”