Ralphs

Information about Ralphs

Ralphs Grocery Company
Subsidiary
Founded1873 (Los Angeles, California)
HeadquartersCompton, California [1]
IndustryRetail
ProductsBakery, dairy, deli, frozen foods, grocery, meat, pharmacy, produce, seafood, snacks, liquor
ParentKroger
Websitewww.ralphs.com
Enlarge picture
A Ralphs Marketplace in Porter Ranch, Los Angeles, California
Ralphs Grocery Company is a major supermarket chain in the Southern California area. It is the oldest such chain west of the Mississippi River. Ralphs Grocery Company is the largest supermarket division of Cincinnati, Ohio-based retail conglomerate Kroger. In addition to Ralphs supermarkets, the Ralphs Grocery Company operates stores under the Cala Foods, Bell Markets, Food-4-Less, and FoodsCo names in California as well as PriceRite stores in Nevada. PriceRite stores either closed or converted to Food-4-Less.

History

Ralphs Grocery Company was founded in 1873 in downtown Los Angeles by George Albert Ralphs. The original store was located at Sixth and Spring Street. In the twentieth century, Ralphs became a grocery pioneer, offering self-service markets with checkout stands in distributed locations. In the 1980s it created a chain of hybrid supermarket/warehouse stores called The Giant (unrelated to Northeastern chain Giant Food) which failed, but the concept returned with the company's merger with the Food 4 Less discount chain. During the mid-1990s, Ralphs expanded as it merged with many Southern California supermarkets including The Boys, Alpha Beta, Viva, and ABC Markets. Ralphs Grocery Company merged with Fred Meyer, Inc in 1997. In 1999 Fred Meyer, Inc, parent company of Ralphs, merged with The Kroger Co. The company slogan is First in California.

In 1999, Ralphs purchased about 30 Albertsons and Lucky Stores, mostly in northern California. The stores were divested as a result of the Albertsons and American Stores merger. Ralphs operated the stores until January 2006, when they announced that all but one Ralphs in northern California would close. In August 2006, the one remaining Ralphs in northern California was given a 60 day notice of closure. Also in August 2006, Ralphs finalized plans to sell 11 (of 13 remaining) Cala-Bell Stores to Harley DeLano, who previously ran the chain. Ralphs expansion into northern California did not work out.

Ralphs opened a new 50,000 square foot store in the South Park neighborhood of Downtown Los Angeles on July 20, 2007 which is located on 9th and Hope St. W/validated parking. This marked the return of the first full-run supermarket in Downtown in 50 years. Ralphs closed a store that had been located at 7th Street and Figueroa in 1950.

2003–2004 strike

Ralphs Grocery Company has contracts with the United Food and Commercial Workers, the largest grocery union in the United States. In late 2003 and early 2004, Ralphs locked out its workers who were members of the UFCW in sympathy with competitor Vons (owned by Safeway Inc.) in Southern California, after the UFCW had declared a strike against Vons. The issues in contract negotiations included healthcare benefits and wage structure, which the supermarkets contended were necessary to reduce their costs and make themselves competitive with discount chains such as Wal-Mart. In March 2004, the strike ended with a settlement regarded as a victory for the grocery chains: new hires would be on a much lower pay scale than existing workers and receive far less generous health benefits.

On October 16, 2006, Ralphs agreed to pay $70 million to settle felony charges that it illegally rehired locked out employees using false names and social security numbers during the strike. $50 million of the settlement will be paid to eligible UFCW members, with the remainder being paid in fines to the Federal government. [2]

In pop culture

  • Ralphs appeared in the film Gus towards the end of the film.
  • Ralphs also appears in the film The Big Lebowski in the beginning as does the Ralphs membership card and shopping cart. Walter asks a character towards the end of a movie "Is there a Ralphs around here?"
  • Ralphs is mentioned by Seth Cohen in the third season of the television series The OC.
  • Ralphs sponsored a task for The Apprentice 6.
  • Ralphs also appears in Frank Zappa's half-hour story-song "Billy the Mountain", which first appeared on The Mothers' album Just Another Band from L.A. in 1972. It is there that Studebaker Hawk, the story's "hero", buys parts of his unusual costume.
  • Ralphs supplies the food for the reality television show Big Brother.
  • Several Ralph's Stores Southern California were used for taping of TLC's Take Home Chef in 2006 & 2007 starring Curtis Stone.
  • In the Powerpuff Girls cartoons, there was a parody of Ralphs supermarket, called Malphs.

References

1. Ralphs to Pay $70 Million in Settlement (San Diego Union Tribune)

See also


  •  • [ e] The Kroger Company
Corporate Directors: David B. Dillon | Robert D. Beyer | John T. LaMacchia | Edward M. Liddy | Katherine D. Ortega | Bobby S. Shackouls | John L. Clendenin | David B. Lewis | Susan M. Phillips | Reuben V. Anderson | Don W. McGeorge | W. Rodney McMullen | Clyde R. Moore | Steven R. Rogel | James A. Runde |
Chains owned by: Baker's | Cala Foods | Dillons | Food 4 Less & Foods Co. | Fred Meyer | Fred Meyer Jewelers | Fry's Food and Drug | Gerbes | Hilander | JayC | King Soopers & City Market | Kroger Food and Drug | Loaf 'N Jug | Owen's Market | Pay Less Food Markets | Quality Food Centers | Ralphs | Smith's Food and Drug | Scott's Food & Pharmacy
Net revenue: $60.55 billion USD (7.3% FY 2006) | Employees: 290,000 | Stock Symbol: NYSE: KR | Website: www.thekrogerco.com
A subsidiary, in business, is an entity that is controlled by another entity. The controlled entity is called a company, corporation, or limited liability company, and the controlling entity is called its parent (or the parent company).
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City of Los Angeles

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Compton, California

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Nickname: The Hub City, CPT, The Hub
Location of Compton in Los Angeles County, California
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Retailing consists of the sale of goods or merchandise, from a fixed location such as a department store or kiosk, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser.[1] Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery.
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Aspinwall Classification System (Leo Aspinwall, 1958) classifies and rates products based on five variables:
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A holding company is a company that owns part, all, or a majority of other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself, rather its only
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The Kroger Co.

Public (NYSE:  KR )
Founded 1883
Headquarters Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Key people David Dillon, CEO & Chairman
Industry Retail
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supermarket is a departmentalized self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise. It is larger in size and has a wider selection than a traditional grocery store and it is smaller than a hypermarket.
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Chain stores (also called retail chains) are a range of retail outlets which share a brand and central management, usually with standardized business methods and practices. They are a type of business chain.
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Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region,
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Cincinnati, Ohio

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Nickname: The Queen City
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Location in Hamilton County, Ohio, USA
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Retailing consists of the sale of goods or merchandise, from a fixed location such as a department store or kiosk, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser.[1] Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery.
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The Kroger Co.

Public (NYSE:  KR )
Founded 1883
Headquarters Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Key people David Dillon, CEO & Chairman
Industry Retail
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Cala Foods is a supermarket chain operating in and around the San Francisco, California, area. Cala Foods is the sister chain to Bell Markets, but Cala operates stores exclusively within the San Francisco city limits.
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Not to be confused with Food Giant.
Giant Food as a supermarket chain may refer to:
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Food 4 Less & Foods Co.

Grocery
Founded 1988
Headquarters Los Angeles, California

Industry Retail
Products Bakery, dairy, deli, frozen foods, general grocery, meat, produce, seafood, snacks, liquor, bulk foods
Website [1]
Food 4 Less
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Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region,
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Alpha Beta was a chain of Californian supermarkets started by Albert and Hugh Gerrard. Alpha Beta began as a system of organizing the groceries in the store in alphabetical order. They took this idea to their flagship grocery store, Triangle Grocerteria, in 1915.
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Fred Meyer, Inc.

Hypermarket Grocery/Department store
Founded 1922 (Portland, Oregon)
Headquarters Portland, Oregon

Key people Michael Ellis, president
Industry Retail
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