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© St. Petersburg Times, published February 3, 2003
Publix Super Markets must have a big dairy department because it sure has milked its status as "official" grocery store of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers until the last minute.
The supermarket chain aired a commercial touting its sponsorship of the Bucs on Super Bowl Sunday. Then it ran a full-page ad in the St. Petersburg Times on Tuesday congratulating the Bucs and identifying itself as the "official supermarket" of the world champions.
It was a last chance to make that boast because Winn-Dixie Stores has signed a deal to replace its rival as the Bucs' preferred grocer.
The switch was effective Saturday. But with all the playoff and Super Bowl hoopla, Winn-Dixie hasn't had a chance to meet with the team and plot its strategy yet, spokeswoman Joanne Gage said last week just after returning from San Diego.
Winn-Dixie did run a full-page ad last week in the Tampa Tribune. It wasn't clear if Winn-Dixie was bragging about the Super Bowl championship or about snaring the Bucs as a partner, but the ad seemed fitting either way.
It read: "Arrgh, the treasure be ours."