‘It’s the fine people of southeastern Kentucky who have made Laurel what it is’

Longtime workers appreciate family feel

Laurel Grocery Co. is a 100-year-old, family-owned and operated company. That family dynamic is extended to its employees, as well. Being considered family by an employer goes a long way in retention, as evidenced by the number of longtime workers at the wholesaler.

That hasn’t gone unnoticed by Chairman and CEO Winston Griffin.

“We have a lot of long-term employees, which is wonderful,” he said. “I love our Christmas gathering, which is the one time a year when we all get together in one place, have a meal together, have drawings, presents, and we give service awards for the long-term employees.”

Each year he gives awards for 25-40 years of service. For the past two years, he has presented 50-year awards.

“That says something extraordinary,” Griffin said.

He added that Laurel’s employees are “the most important” and the company takes care of them the best it can.

“It’s the fine people of southeastern Kentucky who have made Laurel what it is – good, hardworking, family-loving people that have been here a long time and don’t want to move out of the area,” he explained. “They are glad there’s good jobs here and they enjoy working here and living here. That’s the backbone of the whole organization.”

As part of the The Shelby Report’s celebration of Laurel being named Wholesaler of the Year for its Midwest and Southeast regions, five of those long-term employees shared their experiences at the company.

Susan Adams

Susan Adams, human resources director and payroll, has been with the company for 30 years. She recalled that she had only been working there for a couple of weeks when her father had a heart attack.

“I was afraid I was going to lose my job to take care of him,” she said. “Bruce Chesnut told me to do whatever I needed to do to take care of my family, as that is the No. 1 priority.”

Adams started her Laurel career as a buyer’s assistant for two years, then moved into advertising for 12 years.

“Back then, we had to run the ad pictures through a waxer and stick them to the ad templates. We had to print out the color plates and take them to the printer,” she said. “Almost everything was done manually back then. Each designer had a set of stores that they worked with. This was my first stint in advertising at Laurel.”

From advertising, Adams transferred to retail accounting, where she handled store payroll for two years before moving back to advertising.

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