Is it a gas station? Is it a convenience store? A bakery? A grocery store? Take-out full meal restaurant? Is it a winner?
Yes, it’s a winner. And Kwik Trip, a Wisconsin entrepreneurial success dating back to 1965, is also all of the above.
“It’s been a whirlwind over the last ten years,” said Mark Meisner, its vice president of marketing, in a compelling presentation as part of a new lecture series at The Bend Theater. He outlined its rapid growth to 925 Midwestern stores, of which 550 are located in its home state of Wisconsin.
Originated in Eau Claire in 1965 and now based in La Crosse on a 140 acre campus, Kwik Trip has developed a game plan that is a combination of offerings and business principles that charm it customers.
I don’t know what its return percentage is of customers, but it’s gotta be sky high, especially in West Bend, which is home to four of its outlets. (I’m one of those repeat customers.)
Here are elements of its game plan that make its fast growth possible:
- Clean Bathrooms. One of the original entrepreneurs, Robert Zietlow, asked customers to call him on his personal number if they found something in the bathroom they didn’t like. His theory was that if the bathrooms were pristine, its food production would be perceived in the same way.
- Food Safety Lab. To back up his promise of high quality, his company created a food safety lab at its La Crosse campus to test out its food preparation procedures. “If the bathrooms are clean, then customers can trust the food,” said Meisner.
- Every Day Delivery. Its 655 truck drivers leave its highly automated bakery in La Crosse or its distribution center in DeForest to deliver products before the beginning of the work day.
- Profit Sharing. The owners decided early on to share 40% of its operating profit with its 39,000 co-workers, of which 40% are full time. In addition to profit-sharing, the company pays annual bonuses.
- Nimble Decision–Making. The fourth generation of Zietlows still run the company in a family way with little corporate bureaucracy. “We can do some really cool things, and we can move quickly,” said Meisner. In an answer to a question, he said he doubted that the company would ever go public.
- Vertical Integration. Kwik Trip makes a lot of its own products, not just bakery. It has a “green room” to process its bananas. Glazers are a big seller. “We make it; we ship it; we sell it.” It sells 120,000 eggs per day. It makes its own ice cream, up to 12,000 pints a day.
- Its Own Real Estate. The company owns its stores, a standard of 9300 sq. ft. It builds them to last 40 years.
- Hiring for Character. A first question for job applicants is, “Tell me the last time you did something nice for somebody.” The company’s core values for employees include honesty, integrity and humility. Founder Zietlow was known for saying, “Even when the customer is wrong, I want to make it right.”
- Emphasis on Digital Marketing. Kwik Trip places heavy emphasis on web-based marketing. It uses social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.
Kwik Trip’s unique blend of building blocks in its business plan has created a Wisconsin success story. Meisner predicted the chain would pass 1000 stores within the next two years.
