(Bremerton, WA) WinCo Foods, LLC will open a new discount supermarket in Bremerton, Washington, employing nearly 200 individuals—almost all from the local community—the company announced today. The opening marks the 18th WinCo Foods location in Washington. WinCo attributes its continued growth and expansion largely to being an employee-owned private company, or “S corporation employee stock ownership plan” (S ESOP).
WinCo Foods is known as the supermarket low price leader in each of the markets where it operates. The new 55,000 square foot Bremerton store is located at 4969 Kitsap Way.
“We are excited for our new customers to come in and see what makes WinCo Foods unique as our employee owners work hard to save them money on their grocery purchases,” said Michael Read, the company’s spokesperson. “Further, we’re proud to be able to continue expanding opportunities for employee-ownership in Washington. It is truly our culture of ownership that has driven WinCo’s continuous growth and success in the communities it serves.”
As employee owners, WinCo’s workers share in the success of the company in a tangible way. The company created its ESOP more than 25 years ago, creating a culture of ownership in which employees feel motivated to work hard and take pride in what they do. Additionally, being employee owned means WinCo Foods is owned by members of the local community.
S ESOP companies like WinCo Foods create not only employee motivation and success but also higher productivity, profitability, job stability and job growth that generate a collective $19 billion in economic value that otherwise would not exist, according to a University of Pennsylvania study. Further, S ESOPs contribute $14 billion in new savings to their workers each year beyond the income they would otherwise have earned. This is because company earnings flow into the ESOP (retirement) accounts of the workers. Moreover, most S ESOP employees have retirement account balances three to five times higher than the average 401 (k) or other defined contribution plans, as compared with most working Americans who, according to an Associated Press poll, say that they lack confidence in their ability to live comfortably in retirement.
“Employee-owners like those at WinCo Foods work smarter and harder because of their commitment and investment in the business,” said Greg Klein, chairman of the board of directors of the Employee-Owned S Corporations of America. “The dedication of WinCo’s employee owners has created not only a high performing business but also jobs and economic activity in the communities they serve – as we have seen here in Washington.”
Founded in 1967, WinCo Foods is a regional discount supermarket company employing approximately 14,000 individuals and operating 85 stores and four distribution centers in the states of Washington, Idaho, Nevada, California, Oregon, Utah and Arizona.
###
The Employee-Owned S Corporations of America (“ESCA”) is the Washington, DC voice for employee-owned S corporations. ESCA’s exclusive mission is to preserve and protect S corporation ESOPs and the benefits they provide to the employees who own them. These companies have an important story to tell policymakers about the tremendous success of the S ESOP structure in generating long-term retirement savings for working Americans and their families. ESCA provides the vehicle and the voice for these efforts. ESCA represents employee-owners in every state in the nation.