Burt Flickinger III, the well-known retail industry analyst, thinks WinCo Foods may be "the best retailer in the Western U.S." He also thinks the supermarket operator may be "unstoppable" and "Walmart's worst nightmare." Mr. Flickinger made all of these statements in a recent interview with The Idaho Statesman newspaper.
In an interview with Supermarket News in April, Neil Stern, senior partner at McMillanDoolittle, said, WinCo is able to sell goods at prices lower than Walmart "because of the efficiency of its model — high-volume stores with a very committed workforce from management down."
Messrs. Flickinger and Stern are far from alone in their praise of the employee-owned chain.
A rival supermarket chain executive who spoke with RetailWire under the condition of anonymity said, "When they first opened near our stores, we didn't see a big, immediate hit like you do with supercenters. But six months, nine months go by and you look up and they have a 15 percent share of the market. They just keep chipping away. They are every bit as tough, maybe tougher, to compete with as Walmart."
Winco currently operates its no frills stores in Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Washington. It plans to enter the North Texas market next year. The chain requires customers to bag their own groceries and takes no credit cards, only cash, checks or debit cards.
"WinCo is really accelerating its growth significantly," Mr. Flickinger told the Statesman. "You can see WinCo doubling in size every five to seven years. ... No one can compete against them effectively."
The company points to its thousands of employee owners for much of its success. Mr. Flickinger's company, Strategic Resource Group, estimates the average hourly worker stays with WinCo for more than eight years. The company pays 20 percent of each worker's annual income into a pension fund. Other benefits include medical, dental, paid days off, flexible spending accounts and more.
- WinCo model setting new grocery industry standard - The Idaho Statesman
- Pricing: WinCo Keeps Costs Down and Velocity High - Supermarket News (reg. required)
- Grocers eager to open up shop in North Texas - The Dallas Morning News/Denton Record-Chronicle
- About Our Employee-Owned Company - WinCo Foods
- WinCo Jobs - WinCo Foods