GRAND RAPIDS, MI - When I graduated amid the Great Recession, my worldview quickly shrank from endless possibilities to an understanding of the privilege of secure work. I can’t imagine the strength it took Hendrik Meijer to open a grocery store with his family in 1934 during the depths of the Great Depression, making the 90th anniversary the still family-owned retailer is now celebrating that much more wondrous.
"We have built an incredible team here at Meijer that is accomplishing great things and enjoys working together, and they are the reason we've been able to evolve and grow over 90 years from a little grocery store to a new concept in retailing to an agile company with multiple formats," Executive Chairman Hank Meijer stated. "We continue to look at how we can better serve customers in multiple ways to ensure our first 90 years is just our first chapter."
With over 500 Meijer supercenters, grocery stores, neighborhood markets, express locations, and distribution and manufacturing facilities, a footprint spanning throughout six Midwest states, that is quite a chapter to kick off such a legacy.
"Fred Meijer often said that customers don't need us, we need them, so that focus on earning our customers' business every day has been central to how we've operated," said Rick Keyes, Meijer President and Chief Executive Officer. "We are constantly evaluating how we can further elevate the experience our customers have when they shop with us, and innovation paired with great prices and excellent customer service will be how we continue to earn customers' business."
Over the last 90 years, such innovations have included introducing now-familiar offerings such as shopping carts, automatic doors, conveyor belts, supercenters, and self-checkout lanes, to the more recent mPerks, curbside pickup, home delivery, and Shop & Scan.
Operated by more than 70,000 team members, you can dive deeper into the lengths the retailer has risen in a full release here.
"My family never wanted Meijer to just be another business," Hank Meijer reinforced. "We've always wanted to be a force for good by helping our communities address their most pressing needs, and we will continue to do that for the next 90 years."
Congratulations to the Meijer family, both those born and the extended professionals, on this incredible chapter bookmark!
