Bashas'

Infobox_Company
company_name = Bashas' Inc.
company_
company_
company_type = Private
foundation = 1932 Chandler, Arizona
location = Chandler, Arizona
key_people = Eddie Basha, Jr., CEO & Chairman
num_employees = 20,000
industry = Retail
products = Grocery
revenue = USD
homepage = [http://www.bashas.com/ www.bashas.com]

Bashas' is a family-owned grocery store chain, primarily located in Arizona with two locations outside the state; one each in Needles, California, and Crownpoint, New Mexico.

Bashas' History

Najeeb Basha came to the United States from Lebanon in 1886; he and his wife Najeeby moved to Arizona in 1910. The family struggled for years in retail sales in various Arizona towns, facing numerous setbacks but remaining determined to succeed. The first store to officially carry the BASHAS' name, opened in 1932 in Goodyear, Arizona, as a company store where employees of J. G. Boswell could purchase groceries with company scrip. Bashas' was founded by Najeeb and Najeeby's sons, Ike and Eddie Basha, Sr. The current CEO is Eddie's son, Eddie Basha, Jr.

Bashas' Today

The Bashas' Family of Stores includes four distinct formats: Bashas', Bashas' Diné, AJ's Fine Foods and Food City. The company has more than 165 stores serving every county in Arizona, as well as Needles, California, and Crownpoint, New Mexico. The company recently added a new format called Bashas' Farmers Market. This newest format is only in Prescott, Payson, and Winslow.

Bashas' has doubled in size in the last decade with stores under the Bashas' name, as well as AJ's Fine Foods, and Food City, bringing the total to more than 166 stores.

The company adopts a public anti-union stance. Most Bashas' stores are non-union, however, nine stores that Bashas' acquired from previous chains continue to be represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers, which campaigns against the chain. In October of 2007, an Administrative Law Judge sided with the Union and the NLRB ruling that Bashas' violated federal law by withdrawing recognition to the Union at the inherited stores. [http://www.nlrb.gov/shared_files/ALJ%20Decisions/2007/JD-SF-30-07.pdf]

Slogans

Bashas', Bashas' Diné Markets, Bashas' Farmers Market -- Where Fresh Is Best

AJ'S Fine Foods -- Experience the Difference

FOOD CITY -- Make You Feel At Home

Bashas'

Bashas' Supermarkets are traditional grocery stores.

The company recently added a new format called Bashas' Farmers Market. This newest format is only in Prescott, Payson, and Winslow.

Bashas' also has a Distribution Center, located in Chandler, which includes over 16 acres of under-roof space, as well as a full mechanic shop. The perishables area of the Center is temperature- and climate-controlled and includes ripening rooms and areas that vary in temperature from a base temperature of 55 degrees year-round to freezer rooms of 10 degrees below zero.

AJ'S Fine Foods

AJ's Fine Foods are gourmet and specialty stores. The stores feature chef-prepared entrees, an extensive wine collection with trained cellar staff, and specialty baked goods. These are the few former Bayless Markets left.

FOOD CITY

FOOD CITY was acquired by Bashas' in 1993. Since acquiring the original Food City store, several Bashas' stores have been converted to this format. Food City offers a full range of ethnic and Hispanic food varieties. Although there is nothing in the name that suggests that the store focuses on Hispanic foods, inside most stores offer various Hispanic-themed foods. Some of these stores were previously Bayless Markets. See the paragraph above.

In response, Kroger-owned Fry's Food and Drug another Arizona competitor has launched "Fry's Mercado" as a competitor to the Hispanic food market.

This is not related to the Food City locations in Kentucky-Virginia-Tennessee. See KVAT Food City.

Bashas' Diné Markets

Bashas' Diné Markets are located on Native American reservations throughout Arizona. They specialize in the needs of Navajo, Apache and Tohono O'odham customers with products such as Blue Bird flour for fry bread, mutton and wool. Signs in the store are in the native language.

References

*Hernandez, Ruben, [http://phoenix.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2004/10/25/story6.html?t=printable "Bashas' taking new concept to downtown Phoenix"] , "The Business Journal of Phoenix" (at "bizjournals.com"), October 22, 2004.
*McTaggart, Jenny and Stephen Dowdell, "COVER STORY: Retailer of the Year: Growing up Bashas" ( [http://64.233.179.104/search?q=cache:jY0M9JdAoBwJ:www.progressivegrocer.com/progressivegrocer/magazine/article_display.jsp%3Fvnu_content_id%3D1001572374+Bashas%27+chandler+grocery&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=28 Google cache] / [http://www.progressivegrocer.com/progressivegrocer/magazine/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001572374 subscription required] ), "Progressive Grocer", December 1, 2005
*Schmidt, Erin, [http://www.explorernews.com/articles/2006/02/23/business_-_health/business01.txt "Bashas' stores multiplying in Northwest market"] , "Northwest Explorer", February 22, 2005.

External links

* [http://www.bashas.com/ Bashas' Homepage]
* [http://www.myfoodcity.com/ Food City homepage]
* [http://www.ajsfinefoods.com/ AJ'S Fine Foods homepage]
* [http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/1215buzz-bizbuzz15.html "Bashas' customers get treats for store's industry award"] , "The Arizona Republic", December 15, 2005.

Unionization debate

* [http://www.bashastogether.com/english/index.html Bashas' Together, Chain-operated website attacking the UFCW]
* [http://www.bashaswatch.org/ Bashas' Watch, UFCW-operated website attacking the chain]