Giant Foods, established in 1936, is one of the oldest enduring chains of supermarkets in the U.S., and primarily serves the Washington, D.C. area and surrounding states. The Giant Food Stores Advertising Collection spans the years 1951 through 2001 and includes bound, unbound, and microfilmed volumes of reductions of newspaper advertisements and circulars; oversize posters and banner advertisements; Supermarket News issues from the 1990s; advertising scrapbooks from the 1970s and 1980s; and a set of videotapes of broadcast commercials, that document daily local advertising for a major regional supermarket chain.

The Giant Food Stores Advertising Collection spans the years 1951 through 2001 and includes bound, unbound, and microfilmed volumes of reductions of newspaper advertisements and circulars, along with a set of videotapes of broadcast commercials, that document daily local advertising for a major regional supermarket chain.

The collection is arranged by format into eight series: Adbank Commercials; Advertising File; Bound Advertisements; Food World Information Services (FWIS); Microfilm; Scrapbooks; Oversize Advertisements; and Printed Materials. The Adbank Commercials Series consists of videotaped commercials for Giant Foods, and some of its competitors, as compiled by the Adbank research firm. The Advertising File Series includes unbound reductions of Giant newspapers. The Bound Advertisements Series consists of bound volumes of reductions of newspaper advertisements and circulars, arranged by city. The Food World Information Services (FWIS) Series includes reductions of newspaper advertisements arranged by city, as compiled by FWIS. The Microfilm Series contains newspaper advertising archived on microfilm, arranged by city and newspaper title. The Scrapbook Series includes eight scrapbooks with fullpage newspaper advertisements, dating from 1970-1982. The Oversize Advertisements Series include posterboards and banners displayed in storefront windows. The Printed Materials Series includes an incomplete run of Supermarket News, a weekly trade magazine, dating from 1994-1998.