156 years and counting: Military commissaries evolve to become … – DVIDS

By Tamara Eastman, DeCA historian

NOTE: To see a DeCA video related to this release, click here: https://vimeo.com/827413234/703b336551

FORT GREGG-ADAMS, Va. – When the modern-day commissary benefit began on July 1, 1867, it expanded shopping privileges at commissary subsistence stores to enlisted men. The benefit had previously only been available for officers since 1825.

Fast forward 156 years and the commissary benefit has indeed evolved. What were subsistence stores in abandoned warehouses and horse stables, where the customers had to hand their shopping list to a clerk, have become a modern, fully equipped stores under the Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) offering online ordering and pickup with Commissary CLICK2GO.

“Everything changes with time and commissaries are no different. Besides technology, the benefit has become more vital to the military community’s quality of life than ever before,” said Marine Sgt. Maj. Michael R. Saucedo. “The Department of Defense reinforced that notion when they made commissaries part of its ‘Taking Care of Service Members and their Families’ initiative to boost the economic security of the force.”

How did the modern-day benefit get started?

Most commissaries in the late 1860s and early 1870s were housed in very small and cramped spaces, usually in former abandoned horse stables or warehouses. Once inside, customers stepped up to a wooden counter and handed their list to the clerk, who filled the order and then took payment from the customer. There probably wasn’t much on the shopping list in 1868 with commissaries only having 81 stock items.

Commissaries were established on frontier posts throughout the 19th century. The first overseas commissaries opened in Cuba in 1899, China in 1900 and Panama in 1904.

The Army started running stores in France during World War I, and also ran mobile stores that operated from the back of trucks, carrying goods to the men on the front lines.

The Naval Appropriations Act created the forerunner of the modern Navy commissary in 1909 and the Navy opened its first store in Washington, D.C., under this act in 1910.

By the time World War II ended, military commissaries were operating around the world on every continent except Antarctica in more than a thousand locations. In 1947, the year that the Department of the Air Force was established, that service also started operating commissaries.

The Navy ran commissaries in Vietnam beginning in 1959 with a store in Saigon. Eventually, they were operating branch stores all over Vietnam that served U.S. service personnel and their families, along with U.S. news reporters, contract workers and government workers. The U.S. military also operated dairies in Vietnam beginning in 1965. In April 1966 the U.S. Army began running the stores in Vietnam.

In 1990, Congress and DOD decided to consolidate the individual service commissaries under one agency, the Defense Commissary Agency. The agency opened on Oct. 1, 1991.

Today, DeCA continues to serve the military and its families at 236 stores in 13 countries. Commissaries continue to save soldiers and their families thousands of dollars annually on their purchases in comparison to similar products at commercial stores – at least 25 percent in patron savings. Commissaries boast conveniences like internet ordering/curbside pickup services, a mobile app, self-checkouts, digital coupons, dietitian-approved resources to identify healthy foods, sushi bars, hot foods, deli-bakeries, credit and debit card acceptance, gift cards and much more.

“In 2023, the commissary benefit continues building on a tremendous legacy of service in delivering such a much-needed benefit,” Saucedo said. “As we move forward, we are determined to reach out to more eligible customers to ensure they don’t miss out on the significant savings they’ve earned.”

-DeCA-

About DeCA: The Defense Commissary Agency operates a worldwide chain of commissaries providing groceries to military personnel, retirees and their families in a safe and secure shopping environment. Commissaries provide a military benefit, saving authorized patrons thousands of dollars annually on their purchases compared to similar products at commercial retailers. The discounted prices include a 5-percent surcharge, which covers the costs of building new commissaries and modernizing existing ones. A core military family support element, and a valued part of military pay and benefits, commissaries contribute to family readiness, enhance the quality of life for America’s military and their families, and help recruit and retain the best and brightest men and women to serve their country.