Hooper ' s Store Hooper ' s Store is located on Sesame Street between the Fix - It Shop ( or present - day Laundromat ) and the courtyard . Described in early materials as a candy store , Hooper ' s functions largely as a lunch counter and general store , and also boasts a newsstand . The residents of Sesame Street visit Hooper ' s regularly , including Big Bird , who often drops by for a birdseed milkshake . In the season 8 premiere , which aired on November 29 , 1976 , Hooper ' s Store celebrated its 25th anniversary , which means that Mr . Hooper opened the store in 1951 . Hooper ' s Store had gone through a few redesigns over the years : from 1969 - 1998 , the building was green with its trademark yellow - and black - checkered design below the window looking out front with an old - fashioned Bell Telephone System logo on the left side , and a green - and white - striped awning overlooking the front window , various murals have been painted on the building throughout those years . Later in 1998 , when Alan took over , the entire front of the building was repainted a bright blue color and a new red vinyl awning stretching over the front window , and also around the corner of the building to a new side window ( that was added that same year ) with white letters reading " Hooper ' s Store " on both sides ( no murals on the side of the store now due to the new side window , and the checkered design was dropped ) . In 2002 , the building was repainted again , this time it was repainted with in a pale orange color . Starting in Season 39 , Hooper ' s got a complete overhaul , interior , and exterior . It was more " modernized " to keep up with the modern children . It got a new exterior color ( back to blue ) and a new tan and red striped awning . The Bell Telephone System sign is not hanging off of the left side , but it is hanging on the brick wall above awning that faces the arbor . The interior is no longer an old - timey soda shop , yet more of a convenience store . It is clad with refrigeration , and magazines and newspapers on a special shelf . The interior is now a light green and the " first dollar " of the business is hanging on the wall . For Season 46 , Hooper ' s received yet another overhaul , this time recapturing its old - fashioned soda shop roots , complete with repainting the facade framework green , bringing back the classic yellow - and - black checkered design ( complete with the old Bell Telephone System logo , in addition to a new free wifi symbol ) , and its old - fashioned striped awning . A new feature to the redesigned store is a vertical neon sign affixed to the corner of the building . Hooper ' s Store has occasionally played host to outdoor music performances . In a 2003 episode , the store held a karaoke night . In a 2004 episode , The Cute But Not So Fuzzy Four gave a musical performance outside Hooper ' s Store . In 1991 , Biff accidentally damaged the store when he hammered a picture frame to the wall , and Hooper ' s Store was then rebuilt , with work completed in episode 2795 . In a later episode , the mural on the side of the store was updated in a mural by artist Speedy Van Go ( played by Robert Townsend ) . In a 1999 episode , Alan put up a sign in Hooper ' s Store , which exclaimed , " Hooper ' s Store , where you can get what you want just the way you want it . " This sign , however , led to Telly Monster making an unlimited amount of requests . In a 2002 episode , Alan ' s fried chicken special ignited a grease fire that nearly caused the store to burn down . ( This episode was written in response to the September 11 , 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon . ) As glimpsed in " Bedtime with Elmo " , the store ' s normal hours of operation are 8am to 7 : 30pm . During " Jim Henson ' s Musical World " in 2012 , John Tartaglia calls the store ( using the phone number 123 - 456 - 78910 ) , where Alan ' s answering machine states their hours are 7 to 8am ( referencing the show ' s air time on WNET , the main PBS station in the Greater New York Area ) . Staff . Helpers . In a season 12 episode , Geraldo Ortiz is working in the store . In a 1994 episode , Savion fills in for Gina while she ' s sick . In " The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland " , an unidentified curly - haired man can be seen tending to customers and patrons dining outside the store . In Season 35 , Natalie was hired as a temporary replacement for Alan at Hooper ' s Store in one episode , while Alan was on vacation , but she was never shown working there afterwards . Brands . " See also : Brands sold at Hooper ' s Store " In seasons 43 and 44 alone , consumer products seen on the shelves of Hooper ' s have included Goober Face Babyfood Mashed Thanksgiving Dinner , NoLogo Cruisers diapers , SPAM parodies SLAM and CRAM , Flochman ' s Yellow Mustard , Hinee Poo 99¢ Bathroom Tissue , and Glup It cups , spelling error represented on the package . Some brands reference in jokes ; Sonia ' s Toaster Bread Plain Bread Crumbs references the fact that the Fix - It Shop regularly repairs toasters . One episode of Sesame Family Robinson featured some of the various brands . Merchandise . The store has been depicted in several Sesame Street playsets , including the Fisher - Price Little People set . " Hooper ' s Store " also appears as a property on the Monopoly : Sesame Street Edition game board , in place of Park Place .