The Kroger Co.[5] is an American retail corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.[6] It operates (either directly or through its subsidiaries[7]) supermarkets and multi-department stores throughout the United States.[4][8]
The company was founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cincinnati. Kroger stores operate under multiple formats, including multi-department stores, supermarket “combo” stores, marketplace stores, and warehouse-style locations.[4][8] In addition to its retail stores, Kroger operates manufacturing facilities, supermarket fuel centers, pharmacies, and in-store medical clinics.[4][8] About two-thirds of Kroger's employees are represented by collective bargaining agreements,[9] with most being represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW).[10]
Industry publications have ranked Kroger among the largest supermarket operators in the United States by revenue,[11] and research firms have listed it among the nation’s largest general retailers.[12] Kroger also appears on rankings of major U.S. private-sector employers.[13] The company is included on the annual Fortune 500 list of U.S. corporations ranked by total revenue.[14]
History
Early history (1883 to 1950s)
In 1883, 23-year-old Bernard Kroger, the fifth of ten children born to German immigrants, invested his life savings of $372 to open a grocery store at 66 Pearl Street in downtown Cincinnati.[15] He operated under the motto: "Be particular. Never sell anything you would not want yourself."[16][17] He experimented with marketing products his company had produced so that his customers would not need to patronize separate stores and farms.
In 1884, Kroger opened a second location, and by 1902, the Kroger Grocery and Baking Company was incorporated.[18] By this time, the business had expanded to 40 stores with annual sales of $1.75 million. In addition, Kroger became the first grocery chain to have its own bakery.
Business trends
Chains
Kroger Marketplace
Kroger Marketplace is a chain of hypermarkets. The brand was introduced in 2004 in the Columbus, Ohio, area, which lost the Big Bear and Big Bear Plus chains in Penn Traffic's Chapter 11 bankruptcy.[165] The Kroger Marketplace format is based on the Fry's Marketplace stores that the Arizona division of Kroger is currently operating. There are currently a total of 188 marketplaces.[4]
Similar to rival chains Meijer, Kmart, Target, Walmart, and Albertsons, the stores are modeled after Kroger-owned Fred Meyer which house multiple departments.[166]
Manufacturing and distribution
Distribution and logistics
Food distribution and buying takes place under various subsidiaries and divisions. These include:[168]
Kroger operates its own fleet of trucks and trailers to distribute products to its various stores, in addition to contracts with various trucking companies.[2] In June 2018, Kroger announced testing driverless cars for delivering groceries. For this, Kroger is partnering with autonomous car company Nuro.[169][170]
In addition to stocking a variety of regional brand products, The Kroger Company also employs one of the largest networks of private label manufacturing in the country. Thirty-three plants (either wholly owned or used with operating agreements) in seventeen states create about 40% of Kroger's
Private label brands
Kroger offers a collection of its own branded products, referred to by the retailer as "Our Brands". The products are produced and sold in quality tiers, and account for over 30% of the retailer's unit sales.[171][172]
Banner Brand
Banner Brand items are goods that bear the name of Kroger or its subsidiaries (i.e., Ralphs, King Soopers, etc.) or make reference to them (i.e., Big K), and are offered exclusively within Kroger-owned stores. These products are marketed to customers as budget-friendly, and account for over $13 billion in annual sales.[173] Many of Kroger's health and beauty goods, one of the company's fastest-growing private label categories, are manufactured by third-party providers; these products include goods like ibuprofen and contact lens solution.
Private Selection
Other operations
Pharmacy Group
Kroger previously owned and operated the SupeRx drug store chain. In 1985, Kroger outbid Rite Aid for the Hook's Drug Stores chain, based in Indianapolis, Indiana, and combined it with SupeRx to become Hook's-SupeRx. In 1994, Kroger decided to exit the stand-alone drugstore business and sold its Hook's and SupeRx stores to Revco, which later was sold to CVS.[180]
Today, Kroger operates 2,252 pharmacies, most of which are located inside its supermarkets.[4] The Kroger Pharmacies continue as a profitable portion of the business and have been expanding to now include pharmacies in City Market, Dillons, Fred Meyer, Fry's, King Soopers, QFC, Ralphs, Harris Teeter, Smith's Food and Drug, and Kroger Supermarkets.[181]
Controversies
Pricing discrepancies and overcharges
In 2025, an investigation by The Guardian, Consumer Reports, and the Food & Environment Reporting Network revealed widespread overcharging at Kroger stores across multiple states due to expired sale tags leading to higher prices at checkout.[192] Tests in 26 stores across 14 states and Washington, D.C., identified over 150 items with expired sale tags, averaging a $1.70 overcharge per item, or 18% above the advertised sale price.[192] In Colorado, union tests at over 30 King Soopers stores found more than 300 expired tags, with overcharges averaging nearly 15%.[192] An internal Kroger audit at one western U.S. store reported approximately 6% of price tags were incorrect, exceeding the company’s 1% error threshold.[192] The investigation, supported by customer complaints and union reports, linked the issue to chronic understaffing, with expired tags remaining on shelves for weeks.[192]
Further reading
- The Kroger story: A century of innovation by George Laycock, The Kroger Company, Cincinnati, Ohio. 1983, 143p.
Videos
External links
References
- Management & Directors The Kroger Co, retrieved February 7, 2022^
- 2022 Kroger Financial Statements The Kroger Co, retrieved June 11, 2022^
- Number of employees of Kroger 2023 Kroger