Everything seems bigger in Texas — the houses, the cars, and even the grocery stores. Enter H-E-B supermarket. The Texas food store has gained a cult-like following and is known for having dedicated employees, supreme customer service, and specialty products (per Eater).
The name H-E-B actually stands for the original owner’s name, Howard E. Butt. As of recent times, the food store claims it stands for, “Here Everything’s Better” (via Epicurious). The history behind H-E-B sounds a lot like many other American dream stories. A family with next-to-nothing takes a chance, works hard and receives a wildly profitable gain. According to the company’s website, Florence Butt, a mother of three small children, decided to invest her $60 savings into opening a family operated grocery store with her husband, Howard. After more than 100 years of expansion, the proud Texan grocery store (still found only in Texas) has made its cultural mark in the Lone Star state.
H-E-B has its own line of top-selling products
We’ve seen grocery stores with their own private label foods before (shout out to Trader Joes and Aldi). This isn’t a new thing, but H-E-B appears to have made specialization on a grand scale work for their customers. Business Insider reports there are so many private label products to choose from, it’s possible to get every item from your grocery list without having to choose a national brand product. They’re also making headlines with their unique offerings (via KW San Antonio). Items such as sangria flavored sodas, apple-celery juice, and Texas-shaped tortilla chips are a few out of the ordinary products you can find.
One reviewer shares on Influenster, “I love the H-E-B brand soda they have the most unique brand flavors. The root beer is good and I also like the sangria soda. I believe they’re made with natural cane sugar which makes them taste better. Anyways when I usually get soda I always get this brand.”
H-E-B appreciates its employees
H-E-B also ranked high on Glassdoor’s “best places to work” survey in 2018. The results included one employee review, saying, “Fun Culture, Latest Tech, leaders and Company value each person. You are a name and not a number.”
Another reviewers agree, with one commenting on Indeed: “HEB has a lot to offer, there is a lot of different opportunities to choose from and all the employees work in harmony, very family friendly. They take care of their own.” Another person took note of the camraderie of the staff, writing, “I seriously love this company I miss working for them all of the coworkers became super close it’s the best company I’ve ever worked for I would really recommend working there to anyone the hours are ok but the bonds with your coworkers are unforgettable.”
H-E-B is full of Texas pride
Employee satisfaction is not the only company accomplishment known to the public. H-E-B’s Texas pride is often on full display. In fact, Business Insider notes that part of H-E-B’s longevity is due to the store’s advertisement of Texas pride. Native Texan Priya Krishna appears to agree when she writes about her love for H-E-B: “It turns out that, after oil, Texas pride may be the state’s single most lucrative natural resource — in part because it can take so many different forms, each of which can be sold to a distinct audience.”
The H-E-B website declares that H-E-B has “proudly served Texans since 1905,” and that its stores are all about “outfitting Texas families with all they need for Texas lifestyles.” With their roots and operations grounded firmly in just one state, we wonder how they can compete with food stores that have a national reach. Not to worry. According to Forbes, H-E-B is the 11th-largest private company in the country.
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