Iconic 70-Year-Old Supermarket Now Under New Ownership
A fifth-generation grocer from Comanche is the new owner of the Sulphur- Davis-Tishomingo Sooner Foods Stores. Trey Clinckenbeard and Sooner Foods managing partner Kemper Howe closed the deal on March 31, 2025.
Sooner Foods, which began as Howe Grocery in the mid to late 1940’s in downtown Sulphur at West 2nd and Muskogee, became Sooner Foods, Inc. in 1954 and moved to the current location on June 4 of that year. Later, the firm expanded to neighboring Davis and then to Tishomingo.
“I am pleased to announce that your grocery stores in Sulphur, Davis and Tishomingo will remain open for the foreseeable future, wrote Howe, an heir to the firm and grandson of one of the original owners, the late James and Opal Howe. “In September, I developed a five-year succession plan to place the stores with someone that would continue the tradition of supporting our local communities,” he said in an earlier post.
Clinkenbeard said the name of the stores will remain the same and he has a 90-day plan in process for the changeover but expects no major changes at this time.
Clinkenbeard said the first 30 days will be used for evaluation followed by transitioning.
Clinkenbeard has five other stores located in Comanche, Healdton, Hobart, Rush Springs and Wynnewood.
He and his wife have two children. With its opening in 1954, Sooner Foods ushered into Sulphur the modern era of grocery retailing with a large, 7,500 sq. ft. building, offering people a then new, self-service shopping model, expanded line of groceries, refrigerated items, and big meat shop.
Prior to that time, local grocery retailing occurred in small mom and pop type stores throughout the community.
