July_Aug_2015_FINAL_62215_bleedless REV

the Anniversary issue

THE ROUSE HOUSE Tim Acosta, Marketing Director

TEEN HAS TITLE IN THE BAG

In 1995, then 17-year- old Brad Boudreaux of Rouses #1 in Thibodaux earned the title of fastest bagger in the country at the National Grocer Association. He was invited to show off his skills on the David Lettermen Show. Donald Rouse promised him $100 for every time he mentioned Rouses. He earned over $1,000. ​

Mr. Anthony and Miss Joyce raised their kids, Tony, Wayne, Donald, Tommy, Cindy, and Jeaneen, in their home behind Rouses #1.When the family moved out in 1986, our office moved in. I started at Rouses as a stocker at the Raceland store, Rouses #3, in 1981, and worked my way up, or rather around, the business — I worked at all four of our early stores, and eventually the Rouse House. Everyone did a bit of everything. Donald ran the stores. Tommy was in technology — he had a big IBM 34 computer system that tied in all of the stores and our warehouse took up half of the wall in his office. Tony did pricing; my wife, Cindy, did accounting; her sister, Jeaneen, ran payroll. Ali Rouse Royster People worked in the kitchen, old bedrooms ... the rumpus room was our conference room.We stored filing cabinets in closets and bathtubs. Donald’s office was in the formal living room, dad was in my grandparent’s bedroom. Uncle Tim’s office was in Aunt

THE SUPERSTORE Tommy Rouse

Cindy’s old bedroom upstairs next to the attic. And our general manager, Dave, had his desk in Pa’s study. I had a little desk in dad’s office, and helped with filing. Donny worked in the stores with his dad, bagging groceries and wrangling buggies. Eventually we outgrew the house. In 2004 we moved into a new corporate office, which was our old store, Rouses #1. My grandfather renovated it himself.

My dad’s favorite vehicle was a bulldozer. Dad built Rouses #4 on East Park in Houma himself — he actually had to get his general contractor’s license to build that one. We acquired #5 on Audubon in Thibodaux. Rouses #6, the 70,000-square- foot superstore on West Main Street in Houma opened in 1989. Dad built #6 from the ground up. It was his dream store. In 1989, the Superstore was easily the most modern store in the state.The only place that even came close to it — and really just for size — was the old Schwegmann’s Giant Supermarket on Airline Highway in New Orleans.We put in a pharmacy, a video store and a photo-processing center. Customers could have their film developed while they shopped. (Remember videos? Remember film?) We put in our first seafood boiling room at the Superstore and built our first sausage kitchen and smokehouse. We developed the recipes for our stuffed chickens and Jalapeno sausages at #6 (the fresh green onion sausage dates back to Rouses #1). The deli manager recreated my dad’s fried chicken and my mom’s chicken salad.Those are the only two family recipes we don’t share. Tim Acosta Our grand opening theme was Hold On Houma. The commercial mimicked a roller coaster ride, with swoops and turns and camera drops into the store.

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MY ROUSES EVERYDAY JULY | AUGUST 2015