Houchens Industries

Infobox_company
company_name = Houchens Industries
company_type = Private
foundation=1918
location = Bowling Green, Kentucky, United States
key_people=James Gipson, CEO Gordon Minter, CFO
Ervin Houchens, founder
industry = Grocery Store, Insurance and Web Development
num_employees = 11,487 (2007)
revenue=profit US$2.36 Billion (FY 2005) [http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/21/biz_06privates_Houchens-Industries_CTBQ.html Forbes Largest Private Companies: #140 Houchens Industries] Retrieved on November 16, 2007.]

Houchens Industries, is an American employee-owned company, in business since 1918 when it began as a small grocery operated by founder Ervin Houchens in rural Barren County, Kentucky. The company is headquartered in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The company runs about 425 grocery and convenience stores. Sales in 2006 were just under $2 billion., with approximately 10,500 employees.

Operations

The company is best known as a grocer, owning and operating convenience stores (Jr. Food Stores, Tobacco Shoppe) and supermarkets (Houchens Markets, IGA, Save-A-Lot, Mad Butcher). In 2004, Houchens acquired Food Giant supermarkets, which operates stores under the Food Giant and Piggly Wiggly name. [ [http://www.franklinfavorite.com/articles/stories/public/200404/29/houchens4294.html "Acquisition doesn't include Franklin Piggly Wiggly"] , "Franklin Favorite" (newspaper), April 29, 2004]

In recent years, Houchens Industries has diversified greatly, with acquisitions of a Bowling Green-based construction company, as well as recycling, insurance, cigarette manufacturing, and warehousing.

In 2004, Houchens acquired Hitcents, an Internet marketing and development company founded by two high school students from Bowling Green, and now headquartered at the Western Kentucky University Center for Research and Development (which is itself supported by Houchens Industries).

In 2007, the company sold its Commonwealth Brands subsidiary - the fourth-largest cigarette producer in the United States - to the British company Imperial Tobacco Group PLC, for $1.9 billion. It had acquired the company in 2001; it was the first time that Houchens had ever sold one of its acquisitions.

Diversification continued in 2007 when Houchens announced that it would acquire Hilliard Lyons, a full-service stock broker and investment firm based in Louisville, from PNC Financial Services. [cite news|title=Hilliard Lyons sold to Bowling Green firm|url=http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071116/BUSINESS/71116011|date=2007-11-16|publisher="The Courier-Journal"] The sale was completed in March 2008. [cite news|title=Hilliard Lyons sale completed|url=hhttp://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080331/BUSINESS/80331035|date=2008-03-31|publisher="The Courier-Journal"]

In January 2008, Houchens announced that it would acquire 14 convenience stores which sell Shell Oil products from Bowling Green businessman Jerry Browning. The stores are located in Bowling Green and surrounding towns. [cite news|publisher=Park City Daily News|url=http://www.bgdailynews.com/articles/2008/01/29/news/news6.txt|title=Houchens set to buy Browning|last=Catawayo|first=Ameerah|date=2008-01-29]

In April 2008, Buehler Foods of Jasper, Indiana signed a letter of intent to sell the company to Houchens. [cite news|publisher=14 WFIE|url=http://www.14wfie.com/Global/story.asp?S=8220231|title=Local grocery chain sold|date=2008-04-24]

History

The company traces its beginnings to 1917, when founder Ervin Houchens opened his first store ("BG Wholesale") at the age of 19 in a shed in southern Kentucky. This shed, along with other historical structures, has been well preserved and is open to the public.

He sold the company in 1983.

The current CEO, Jimmie Gibson, began with the company in 1965, as an accountant.

Other

*The company has been completely owned by its employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) since 1988. Employees select members of the board of directors and vote on the sale of any substantial assets.Bruce Schreiner, [http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071224/BIZ/712240312/1076/rss01 "Houchens expanding at a rapid pace: Company has evolved since Kentucky start"] , "Associated Press", December 24, 2007]

*Houchens Industries sponsors the annual Kentucky High School Athletic Association's Girls' "Sweet 16" Basketball Championship Tournament, held annually at WKU's E.A. Diddle Arena.

*As of December 2007, the company had no corporate website - the CEO said that the company was working on it.

References

External links

* [http://www.hoovers.com/houchens-industries-inc./--ID__52833--/free-co-factsheet.xhtml Hoovers.com factsheet]