Kroger 2011 Annual Report Download - page 5

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3
Shopping Experience. Perhaps no other area is as exciting or ripe for innovation as the shopping
experience in our stores. We continue to focus on aspects of the shopping experience that Customers say
are most important to improve. At the top of that list is speed of checkout. No one likes waiting in long lines,
so we set out to improve the experience. We employed multiple ways to shorten checkout time, including
technology that helps us staff our registers when the Customer is ready to checkout. As a result, we have
reduced the average wait time from several minutes to less than one minute.
* * *
These are just some of the ways Kroger continues to progress—to be more and more relevant to
Customers, to be a preferred retail employer and a leader in retail innovation. Even in the midst of all this
change, however, some things remain constant. These enduring values include Kroger’s commitment to
valuing our Associates, partnering with the communities we serve and rewarding Shareholders.
The importance of these things to our Company and our leadership will never change.
Valuing our Associates
We are proud of our record as a job creator. Kroger has created more than 29,000 new jobs in the last
five years, and today employs more than 339,000 Associates. Our commitment to Associates includes
our dedication to safety, significant investments in training, solid wages, and good quality, affordable
health care.
Safety is one of our core values and Kroger is one of the safest companies in our industry. Associate
engagement in safety programs has reduced accident rates in our stores and manufacturing plants by
75 percent since 1995.
Partnering with the Communities we Serve
Kroger was honored to be recognized by Forbes magazine as the most generous company in
America in 2011, based on charitable giving measured as a percentage of pre-tax profits. I am very proud of
this remarkable distinction, and our Associates and Customers are, too.
Like other areas of our business, Kroger’s charitable contributions are focused on those areas that
Customers have told us are important to them: feeding the hungry and supporting women’s health, the
military and their families, and local organizations and schools. In 2011, Kroger:
•฀ Donated the equivalent of 160 million meals to local food banks through our partnership with Feeding
America.
•฀ Partnered with vendors and Customers to give more than $5.5 million in support of women’s health
and breast cancer awareness programs.
•฀ Partnered with vendors and Customers to raise $1.5 million for the USO.
•฀ Supported more than 30,000 schools and local organizations through our Community Rewards Program
that delivers personalized, Customer-driven donations based on total purchases.
When you combine the cash, food and product we donate to a variety of causes and programs, Kroger
contributes more than $220 million annually to support the communities we serve.
We also support our communities through our ongoing commitment to supplier diversity. Kroger
currently spends more than $1 billion annually with women- and minority-owned businesses. This
is good for the business and the community, as our engagement with these suppliers positions Kroger to
continue providing for an increasingly diverse Customer base.
In recognition of our leadership, Kroger was inducted into the United States Hispanic Chamber of
Commerce Million Dollar Club and named one of the “Top 50 Organizations for Multicultural Business
Opportunities” by DiversityBusiness.com during the year. Kroger also remains a member of the Billion
Dollar Roundtable.