The best company in the world? Just maybe

We believe that there are three ways to differentiate: service, quality and price,” Todd Jones, president of Florida-based Publix explains. “You’ve got to be good at two of them, and the best at one. We make service our number one, then quality and then price.”

So goes the thinking at Publix, one of the most successful and profitable grocery chains anywhere.

Publix dominate the Florida market and its net margins of 5.6 per cent are the envy of the U.S. grocery business.

Publix isn’t shy about taking on Walmart’s price promise in advertising campaigns. A recent billboard ad proclaimed “Here’s the scoop: Walmart doesn’t always have the lowest price.”

Nor does it worry about finding great managers. Publix, which is employee owned, only promotes from within and for years it staff have shared in the company’s success.

A store manager with the company 20 years is likely to have accumulated $300,000 in stock and another $30,000 in dividends.

No wonder Publix staff goes above and beyond in the customer service department. The more people shop at their store, the richer they can get, according to an article in Forbes magazine

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