Benny’s

Ghost Corp Apparel — resurrecting iconic corporate ghosts.

Benny’s was the kind of regional retailer that seemed permanently attached to southern New England. Founded by Benjamin Bromberg in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1924 as Benny’s Auto Store, the company grew from a single automotive-supply shop into a beloved discount chain serving Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.

Over the decades, Benny’s became the place to buy a little bit of everything — automotive supplies, bicycles, hardware, household goods, seasonal merchandise, and countless other things you didn’t necessarily know you needed until you walked through the door. The company remained family-owned through three generations of the Bromberg family and expanded steadily across southern New England.

Unlike many retail chains that disappeared through bankruptcy or acquisition, Benny’s owners simply decided it was time to close. In September 2017, the company announced that all 31 remaining stores would shut down. The final Benny’s location, in Greenville, Rhode Island, closed on December 11, 2017, ending 93 years of business.

Benny’s left enough of an impression that Rhode Island even got Benny’s: The Musical after the chain closed. Apparently, becoming a corporate ghost is one thing. Getting your own stage production afterward is showing off.

Our Benny’s collection celebrates the familiar storefronts, neighborhood discount-store experience, family-owned history, and a southern New England institution that survived for nearly a century before turning out the lights for good.