Employee Owned
For Immediate Release
Contact
Emily Coborn, Communications Manager, Coborn’s Inc., 320-203-6323, [email protected]
Coborn’s announces partnership with JK Foods to operate stores in North Dakota
Coborn’s expands to western North Dakota to serve region’s growing community
ST. CLOUD, Minn. (April 2, 2012) – Coborn’s Inc. today announced its partnership with Williston, ND-based JK Foods,
which owns three grocery stores and one floral shoppe in the cities of Stanley, Tioga and Williston, ND. Coborn’s and JK
Foods will partner to co-own and operate these stores.
“Expanding our Coborn’s family of stores to include these four new locations signals positive, strategic growth for our
company,” said Coborn’s President and Chief Executive Officer Chris Coborn. “We look forward to our partnership with
JK Foods to now co-own and operate these stores so we can serve the region’s growing community.”
JK Foods was founded by Mike Kraft in 1982 with a single store in Williston, ND. Today, JK Foods boasts more than 300
employees and strong store brands, including Economart, Stanley Food Pride, Tioga Food Pride and Country Floral.
These stores are ideally located in western North Dakota, where they serve the significant population growth that is
occurring as part of the North Dakota oil boom.
“Our partnership with Coborn’s will make our entire family of stores even stronger than it is today,” said JK Foods
founder Mr. Kraft, who will continue to oversee the four western North Dakota stores with the existing employees.
“Coborn’s and JK Foods share common philosophies in terms of employee engagement, store operations, and more. Our
partnership gives us the opportunity to share ideas and leverage best practices across our entire organization so we can
create an exceptional shopping experience for our customers.”
JK Foods is a recognized leader in the grocery industry for its operations and corporate culture of truly caring for
employees. In 2009, Mr. Kraft was named the recipient of National Grocers Association’s prestigious “Spirit of America”
award, which honors distinguished individuals for their active involvement and participation in community service and
public affairs. This award has been presented to more than 500 individuals, including former Presidents, George Bush
and Gerald Ford, former Vice President Dan Quayle and numerous U.S. Senators and Representatives. Chris Coborn also
received the “Spirit of America” award in 2001.
In 2002, Mr. Kraft received the “Grocer of the Year” award from the North Dakota Grocers Association. Similarly,
Coborn’s was recognized in 2011 by Grocer Headquarters magazine as “Independent Retailer of the Year.”
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About Coborn’s Inc.
Coborn’s is an employee-owned grocery retail company that is based in St. Cloud, MN. Including its partnership with JK
Foods, Coborn’s owns and operates more than 90 retail locations, including 45 grocery stores throughout Minnesota,
Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, North Dakota and South Dakota. These operate under the brands of Coborn’s, Cash Wise
Foods, Save-A-Lot, Economart and Food Pride. Coborn’s also has an online grocery ordering and delivery service named
CobornsDelivers; stand-alone convenience, liquor, video, pharmacy and Ace Hardware stores; and Subway restaurants.
To support its many retail locations, Coborn’s operates its own central bakery, dry cleaning facility and grocery
distribution center. Coborn’s has approximately 6,800 employees.
About JK Foods
JK Foods was founded by Mike Kraft in 1982 with a single store in Williston, ND. Today, JK Foods boasts more than 300
employees and strong store brands, including Economart, Food Pride and Country Floral. JK Foods operates retail
grocery and floral shoppes throughout western North Dakota, where they serve the significant population growth that is
occurring as part of the North Dakota oil boom.