Joe Albertson
| Joe Albertson | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Joseph Albert Albertson October 17, 1906 Yukon, Oklahoma Territory |
| Died | January 20, 1993 (aged 86) Boise, Idaho |
| Resting place | Morris Hill Cemetery Boise, Idaho |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | College of Idaho |
| Occupation | Albertsons grocery stores |
| Known for | Founder of the Albertsons supermarket chain and philanthropist |
| Spouse(s) | Kathryn McCurry Albertson (m. 1929–93) |
| Children | Barbara Jean Albertson Newman (1933–2012) |
| Parent(s) | Earl and Rhoda Albertson |
Joseph Albert "Joe" Albertson (October 17, 1906 – January 20, 1993) was an American businessman, the founder of the Albertsons chain of grocery stores and a noted philanthropist.
Born in Yukon, Oklahoma Territory, Albertson was one of four sons born to Rhoda and Earl Albertson. In 1909, before he was three, the family moved west to Caldwell, Idaho.
After graduation from Caldwell High School in 1925, Albertson studied business for two years at the College of Idaho in Caldwell. While in college in 1927, he began his career in the grocery industry as a clerk at a local Safeway grocery store. On the final day of 1929, he married his college classmate Kathryn McCurry, of Boise, Idaho. They had one daughter, Barbara Jean Albertson Newman (1933–2012).
Albertson quickly moved through the ranks with Safeway, until he was supervising more than a dozen stores. But he was not satisfied and wanted to start his own store—one that he could build to his own specifications and manage his own way. With $5,000 of the money he and Kathryn had saved, and with $7,500 borrowed from his wife's aunt, Albertson formed a partnership with L.S. Skaggs, a former Safeway division manager, and Tom Cuthbert, Skaggs' accountant. At the age of thirty-two, Albertson opened his first store in 1939 on three principles: quality, good value, and excellent service. Albertson is credited as being one of the pioneers of the complete one-stop, self-service supermarket concept.
The first store was located at Sixteenth and State Streets in Boise, and he opened his second and third Albertsons stores in Nampa and Caldwell in 1940. During the years of World War II, when food was being rationed, he filled the empty shelves with health and beauty products, general household goods, and other non-food items. Albertson's reputation for generosity and community involvement grew during those war years. His stores promoted war bonds and sponsored scrap drives that collected aluminum, steel, fats, and paper for recycling.
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