Location, customer service, price and quality are just a few of the attributes that help Food Giant stores in northern Mississippi stand out.
The Shelby Report of the Southeast recently visited with David Holcomb, division manager, to learn more about the company’s competitive strategy.
How long has Food Giant been operating in Mississippi?
Kenneth Storey, founder, opened his first store in 1969. After three decades of dedication, he retired in 1999 and sold the company to the employees, transforming us into a 100-percent employee-owned business.
In 2004, we merged with Houchens Industries, another 100-percent employee-owned company, further solidifying our commitment to employee ownership.
In the 13 stores I oversee, sizes range from 40,000 square feet to as small as 17,000 square feet. We operate under various banners, including nine Food Giant stores, one CashSaver (Cost Plus), one Big Star, one Ripley’s Market & Ace Hardware and Greenwood Marketplace.
How would you describe the markets you operate in?
Our stores are in rural small towns where we have competitors such as other independents, as well as Walmart and Kroger, within a short drive.
Our biggest challenge has always been finding and retaining quality associates. The next biggest challenge is embracing technological advances in our approach to marketing and operations.
It is very expensive to keep up with increasing technology, intergrating systems and working through the kinks. We must evaluate every opportunity with extreme scrutiny. There are so many options becoming available.
Given this, why are shoppers choosing your stores and not ‘the other guy?’
Location, customer service, price and quality. Our employees are not just employees but employee owners, so this really gives them an extra incentive to take pride in their work and their service. One of our sayings and even a jingle: “Food Giant, where your neighbors are the owners.”
Beyond this, I believe our biggest strength lies in our meat departments, where we offer fresh cuts and fresh grinds daily. We proudly provide USDA Choice beef, Prairie Farms pork and Sanderson Farms chicken.
We are known for our famous fried chicken and are consistently voted as having the best in most every town we operate in.
Our deli departments are also growing in popularity. Our Southern cooking hot bar is a major draw, especially on chicken and dressing days, when we have lines backed up during lunch. Our delis feature smokers for pork butts, ribs, and chicken.
We also sell plants and garden bedding material, which draws huge crowds in the spring and fall.
Why do you think that is?
Our stores are in rural areas, which means shoppers would need to drive a bit to find another store. Also, we buy bedding products by the truckload, which allows us to offer competitive pricing comparable to big box stores.
We do a better job of caring for our plants than most big box stores do. Our store manager at Greenwood Marketplace is the one who had the idea to start the outdoor sales program. He had so much success, we expanded it to our other stores.
What can you tell me about your new loyalty program?
Our new Rewards digital coupon program at the Food Giant banners is thriving. By eliminating 75 percent of our newspaper-distributed ads, we’ve been able to pass those savings on to our customers through free merchandise and special pricing offers for our rewards members.
Can you walk me through your management style and the staffing challenges you alluded to earlier?
We have about 800 people working at all our stores. Some have been with us a while and many are new. I strongly believe the best way to manage and train employees is though hands-on teaching.
Turnover is a killer cost for us, so to combat this we try to create an environment where employees feel valued. We strive to have a family-type environment in our stores.
When one of our fellow employees is in need of assistance due to an emergency or crisis, supervisors and employees join hands to help. We often hold fundraisers to aid the employee and his family. These fundraisers give us the opportunity to come together as a store family.
What other ways do you show employees they are valued?
Supporting employees, whether during a challenging time or an accomplishment, is important to our organization.
As leaders in the store, we set the culture. If we don’t express how we value our employee owners, how can we expect others to?
As supervisors, we stay in touch with the happenings at each store and bring food, flowers or support in some fashion to an employee in need.
The same holds true for acknowledging milestones. If you visit one of our stores, you may hear a manager singing “Happy Birthday” to an employee and sometimes to a customer.
If a manager tells you that one of his clerks got accepted into a college or some other type of achievement, and a supervisor visiting a store congratulates them, they know they are valued not only by the local management but by the company.
It is not just in big things or gimmicks; it is in everyday treatment of each other. We firmly believe in treating others as you would like to be treated.
What is the secret sauce in your hiring and retention strategy?
Our secret sauce is employee ownership. We are thankful to have many long-term employee-owners.
When we celebrate “Blue Envelope Day,” our newer employees see the anticipation and excitement of opening a blue envelope with this year’s stock statement. This anticipation and excitement become contagious.
Is it important to be involved in the communities you serve?
Yes. We are very active in our communities, supporting local schools, churches and nonprofits, especially local food pantries. Every fall, we work with our local TV station and Chevrolet dealership to “pack the pickup,” a concentrated effort to support local food pantries in northern Mississippi.
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Are there any specific initiatives or expansions Food Giant is considering?
We have already implemented electronic shelf tags in five of our stores and plan to continue this rollout across more locations.
The driving force behind electronic shelf tags was staff shortages and the rising cost increases involved with printing shelf tags and signs. Also, better pricing accuracy will lower shrink and increase customer confidence.
The initial investment is very large, and we are still trying to monitor the ROI on this venture before expanding further.
In addition, we are looking at ways to grow home delivery. We have opted in with DoorDash and, most recently, Uber Eats. To better serve our customers’ needs, we recently began exploring options for expanding our home delivery opportunities via a third party.
