Here’s a good profile by the San Bernardino County Sun about of Jack Brown, the CEO of Stater Bros. Markets in Southern California.
Stater Bros. also is the chief sponsor of the annual and massively popular Route 66 Rendezvous in San Bernardino.
Some excerpts about Brown and his leadership:
But if Brown has a signature phrase, it’s “hometown company,” as in, “We’re a hometown company and we’re very proud of that.” […]
“First and foremost, he’s an excellent businessman. He’s one of the giants of the Inland Empire,” said Randall Lewis, executive vice president of the Rancho Cucamonga-based Lewis Group of Cos.
“He and the company do so much for the community,” Lewis added. […]
At 13, Brown took his first job as a boxboy at Berk’s Market Spot in San Bernardino. He went on to spend most of his professional life in the grocery business. […]
At the time of Brown’s arrival, Stater Bros. had 69 stores and 3,300 employees, he said. The firm now has 167 stores and more than 18,000 workers.
Even with the poor economy, Brown and Stater Bros. executives are considering the purchase of some rivals’ stores.
If Brown is considering retirement, he is not talking about it.
“People ask me if I should retire, and I say, `Why should I? I have a very good parking space,”‘ Brown said.
I remember reading an article in early 2009, during the beginnings of the recession, when Brown vowed to keep his grocery prices low as low as possible to help financially struggling families.
I bet a lot of communities would love to have a Stater Bros. grocery in their midst.
Having known Jack for many years and worked with him, and his staff, on the Rendezvous I can tell you he is truly a GREAT man, loyal roadie and a good person.
Jack is a former Navy man and when we do things together he always says “You can always tell a Marine just can’t tell them much”
Plus I shop at Stater Bros and know many of the people that work at the store and management levels, truly a good company to work for.