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These Beloved Mom and Pop Shops Have Stood the Test of Time

Family values can mean good business for generations

black and white photo of a wegmans
Wegmans

Businesses wanting to attract customers often boast that they’re “family-owned and operated.” The personal touch and relatability make it easy to feel like you’re supporting a business that shares your values rather than some generic, big box store or corporate brand.

More than 24.2 million businesses in the U.S. are family-owned. But many mega companies started out as family businesses and some remain so.

A key to longevity is maintaining the family values these companies started out with in the beginning. Keeping business in the family ensures that the people running the show know it inside and out. Having a personal stake in the outcome often becomes less about money and more about passing on a legacy.

Founders who start these big family businesses also invest in their customers’ experiences and the quality of their products: treating your customers like they are part of your family goes a long way to getting repeat business.

The following businesses had humble beginnings but have grown into monster brands:

a classic chick-fil-a on a corner
Courtesy of Chick-fil-A, Inc.

Chick-fil-A

If you’ve ever been to a Chick-fil-A, you know the customer service is friendly and polite and always ends with, “My pleasure.” While many quick-service food joints cook up chicken nuggets, none does it the way Chick-fil-A does.

Since 1946, when it began as The Dwarf Grill in the Atlanta suburbs, the business has grown to run restaurants in 48 states plus Washington D.C. and Canada. Founder Truett Cathy, who died in 2014, passed the company to his son, Dan, who operates it with his son Andrew, the current CEO.

several people representing multiple generations smile while talking to each other at a barbecue

You can subscribe here to AARP Experience Counts, a free e-newsletter published twice a month. If you have feedback or a story idea then please contact us here.

Truett Cathy, a Bible-following philanthropist who has given away millions to his employees so they can afford college, said he “wasn't in the chicken business, but the people business.” His legacy of investing in the people involved in his business  — from customers to employees — lives on to this day.

Walmart

Now one of the biggest and best-known retailers in the world, Walmart was started in 1962 by Sam Walton in Rogers, Arkansas. By 1967, the Walton family owned 24 stores. It was first listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1972, when it had 51 stores. In 1993 it celebrated its first $1 billion sales week.

Wegmans

Wegmans started as brothers Walter and John Wegman selling vegetables in Rochester, New York, in 1916. Now, the brand has grown to over 100 stores across seven states. The brothers passed on the business to their children, who then passed it on to their children, keeping this business family-owned three generations later.

If you ask why they’ve found success for over a century, the family attributes it to putting people first. From their customers to their employees, Wegmans credits the role its people play in keeping the company successful.

a black and white photo of an aldi opening in germany
Feddersen/ullstein bild/Getty Images

Aldi

Aldi began as a single grocery store in Germany and has been in business for 110 years.

Brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht took over from their parents after they returned from World War II, when they fought for Hitler’s Third Reich and were taken prisoner by the allies. They decided they could sell at lower prices by foregoing decorations, advertising and holding onto inventory that wasn’t selling.

The brothers separated after a dispute over whether to sell cigarettes. Theo took the stores north, Karl went south.

Aldi South remained a discount store that eventually opened in the U.S., Australia, and Eastern Europe. Aldi North operates in Western and Southern Europe but bought Trader Joe’s in the United States in 1979. Aldi—which is short for Albrecht Discount—has maintained its low prices by creating its own food brands.

sc johnson headquarters in racine wisconsin
Courtesy of SC Johnson

S.C. Johnson & Son

S.C. Johnson & Son S.C. Johnson & Son is a leading manufacturer of household cleaning, storage and other products. Their tagline is “S.C. Johnson – a Family Company at Work for a Better World.” 

Founded in Racine, Wisconsin in 1886 by Samuel Curtis (S.C.) Johnson, the company prides itself on making decisions based on family values and not on pressure from a board or outside stakeholders.

“Because we’re family-owned and led, we don’t have to answer to Wall Street,” the company states, adding, “S.C. Johnson can make the best decisions not just for the next quarterly earnings report but for the next generation.”

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