Ridley's Family Markets
 | |
| Company type | Grocery |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1984 (Payson, Utah) |
| Headquarters | Jerome, Idaho |
| Products | Bakery, dairy, deli, frozen foods, general grocery, meat, pharmacy, produce, seafood, snacks, liquor |
| Website | shopridleys.com |
Ridley's Family Markets is a family-owned chain of grocery stores based in Jerome, Idaho. It was founded in 1984 in Payson, Utah. As of 2014 Ridley's operates 32 supermarkets in Idaho, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and Wyoming.[1]
As of 2014 it was ranked as the 20th largest private company in Idaho.[2]
History
In 1984, Jerry and Connie Ridley opened a 11,000-square-foot (1,000 m2) grocery store in Payson, Utah.[1] Ridley's first operated as an IGA franchise called Ridley's IGA Foodliner. Two years later, the couple sold the Payson store and begin a partnership to build and operate a Food 4 Less store in Provo, Utah.[1] In 1988, after grocery retailer Farmer Jack closed their short-lived stores in Idaho and Utah, the Ridleys decided to sell their share of the Food 4 Less store to acquire three former Farmer Jack stores in Idaho.[1] Ridley's Food Corporation was incorporated that same year as a privately held company.[3] Throughout the 1990s, Ridley's began acquire several grocery stores in Idaho including two Smith's Food and Drug stores in Boise (1992) and two Sprouse-Reitz stores in Emmett and McCall (1994).[1] Each of these four stores were eventually closed or relocated.[1] The retailer's first stores in Nevada and Wyoming opened in 2007 and 2008, respectively.[1]
Between 2008 and 2010, Ridley's acquired three Albertsons stores in Blackfoot, Idaho and Orem, Utah.[1] Following the purchase of three pharmacies in Idaho and Nevada, Ridley's opened the first free-standing pharmacies in the company's history in 2010.[1] In 2013 Ridley's opened the first of a new warehouse store format called LoLo's Fresh Foods Warehouse in Provo Utah. On December 20, 2014 it was announced that Ridley's would be buying four grocery stores in Wyoming. The Safeway Store(s) in Sheridan and Casper, along with the Albertson's Store in Laramie are being purchased from Associated Food Stores, a grocery wholesaler and co-op that facilitates such deals.[4] In July 2015, Ridley's announced the purchase of a Harmons grocery store in Ogden, soon to become a new Ridley's location.[5]
Since the late 1990s, Ridley's has been supplied by Associated Food Stores. The company was previously supplied by Fleming Foods.
Ridley's Family Markets was listed as the 20th largest Private Business headquartered in Idaho as of 2014 according to the Idaho Statesman edition of Idaho Private 75 ranking.
Electronic retailing innovations
Electronic marketing innovations that Ridley's had developed around its customer loyalty program were recognized in 2006 with a Global Electronic Marketing award. Program features recognized by the award included customizable shopping lists, card points that could be redeemed for rewards and discounts, and e-mail delivery of weekly ads.[6] In 2008, it was announced that Ridley's would conduct an experimental implementation of electronic coupon clearing in one of its stores. This is an innovation that transfers coupon redemption information from retailers to manufacturers electronically, with the goal of eliminating the transaction costs and other problems involved with traditional methods of coupon processing. Although this technology has many perceived advantages, it had not been successfully implemented on a large scale.[7]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i About Us, Ridley's Family Markets website, accessed September 17, 2009
- ^ Idaho's Top Private Companies (compiled by KPMG), The Idaho Statesman, October 26, 2008
- ^ Ridley's Food Corporation (Ridley's Family Markets), Manta.com
- ^ "Ridley's Family Market buying Sheridan Safeway, three other Wyoming stores". The Sheridan Press. 2014-12-20. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
- ^ Harmons leaving Ogden location July 17, 2015. Standard-Examiner. Retrieved August 12, 2015
- ^ Supervalu, Ridley's, MobileLime Win Global Electronic Marketing Awards, Progressive Grocer, October 16, 2006
- ^ Ridley’s Plans to Deploy Electronic Coupon Clearing, Supermarket News, May 14, 2008