Wegmans
Wegmans began in 1915 as a mom and pop grocery store in Rochester, NY. Sons Walter and John Wegman (Chairman Robert Wegman’s father and uncle) helped out in the family business. Walter worked in the grocery store while John peddled fresh produce from a pushcart. In 1916, John opened the Rochester Fruit & Vegetable Co., and Walter joined him a year later. By 1921, the two brothers bought the Seel Grocery Co., and expanded their operations to include general groceries and bakery operations. Highlights from other decades:
1930s: The stores become incorporated, and expand their product line to include meats, produce, groceries, dairy products, and baked goods.
1940s: Wegmans begins offering frozen foods and adopts a self-service format.
1950s: Wegmans introduces a broad program of employee benefits for full-time employees. Wegmans also begins handling its own real-estate development, leasing, and property management.
1960s: Wegmans begins expanding beyond Rochester with a store in Syracuse, NY.
1970s: The chain begins putting pharmacies in their stores. Laser scanning is introduced to read UPC symbols on products, and Wegmans private-label products are launched throughout the chain. The company creates a Consumer Affairs department to act as the voice of the consumer inside the company and to educate shoppers about nutrition, food safety, and other food issues. Wegmans opens its first store in Buffalo, NY.
1980s: Chain-wide scholarship employee program begins, as well as an award-winning mentoring program to help at-risk urban youth complete high school and gain work skills. First "Wokery" opens. Stores begin to offer Club Pack products.
1990s: Wegmans introduces "Shoppers Club" electronic discount program, an alternative to coupon-clipping. Chain also hires a registered dietitian and launches the "Strive for 5" program offering recipes with nutritional analyses to promote eating fresh vegetables and fruits daily for better health. Opens first "Market Café," an in-store restaurant, and their web site is launched. Wegmans enters the Pennsylvania market with a store in Erie, and New Jersey in the Princeton area.
2000s: Wegmans’ weekly specials go on line, with a feature that allows customers to build a shopping list sorted by store layout. The company launches Menu magazine in 2001. They are the first chain in the country to introduce fresh irradiated ground beef under their own label in 2002. That same year, Wegmans opens its first full-service restaurant, Tastings, at the Pittsford, NY store. The company’s first stores in Virginia and Maryland open in 2004 and 2005, respectively. FORTUNE magazine ranks Wegmans #1 in its 2005 list of the “100 Best Companies to Work For.” Wegmans’ Organic Research Farm is established in 2007 on the shores of Canandaigua Lake. In 2008, Wegmans stops selling all tobacco products out of concern for the role that smoking plays in people’s health. The Pub marked Wegmans first full-service restaurant inside the store when the Collegeville, PA store opened in 2009. At the end of ’09, Wegmans closed Tastings restaurant and opened Next Door Bar & Grill across the street. The new restaurant is described as ‘a fun place with great food.’
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