Five generations of family values

Grocer has grown from one location in Sauk Rapids to 120 across region

For 100 years, members of the Coborn family have been going way beyond just meeting the needs of communities’ needs for groceries. Along the way, it has defied the odds and is now five generations strong.

According to “Behind the Store Shelves,” a book that traces the history of Coborn’s, “Only one-third of family businesses survive into the second generation and a mere 12 percent are still viable into the third generation. As fourth-generation leaders of the Coborn’s business, Chris and Mark Coborn (who retired as EVP in 2012) represent a mere 3 percent.”

In 1921, Chester A. Coborn opened his first store in Sauk Rapids, Minnesota. Today, Coborn’s Inc. boasts more than 120 grocery, convenience, liquor and other retail locations throughout the Midwest and employs some 9,000 people.