About
Born of Irish immigrant parents in 1884, Michael J. Cullen
learned about the grocery business during his early years of
employment. At 18 he worked as a clerk for the Atlantic & Pacific
Co., moving on to general sales manager at Mutual Grocery and
Kroger Stores. His natural marketing talents, work experience
observations and insight in the grocery business led to his idea
for mass merchandising - selling high volume at low profit
margins.
He wrote a letter to the president of Kroger, describing his ideas
that would eventually revolutionize the industry, his letter went
unanswered. Undaunted, and confident in his ability to see his
idea become a reality, he quit his job and moved his family to
Long Island.
It was there that Cullen leased a vacant garage on Jamaica
Avenue in Queens, just a few blocks from a busy shopping
district, and on August 4th, 1930 opened the doors to America's
first supermarket, King Kullen Grocery Company.
First Store
Success was instantaneous. People came from miles around. To
the public, King Kullen was more than a convenience - King
Kullen meant affordable food and gained recognition as the
"World's Greatest Price Wrecker." By 1936 there were 17 King
Kullen supermarkets doing approximately $6,000,000 annually.
Although Michael Cullen died suddenly, just 6 years after
opening his first store, King Kullen continued to grow and
expand through the leadership of his wife and the support of
family members.
A positive relationship between management and employees has
been one of the greatest contributors to the success of King
Kullen. A leader in employee relations, King Kullen surprised the
industry by providing their employees with insurance, vacation
and pay raises in the late 30's and by 1940 was firmly
established as New York's premier supermarket.
In the annals of merchandising history, Michael J. Cullen's story
stands out as one of vision, courage and tenacious perseverance.
Like the best of the innovators from our nation's past, the
contributions he made to society during his lifetime continue to
affect us to this day. Today, three generations later, King Kullen
is still family controlled and operated, remains a leader in the
supermarket industry and is recognized by the Smithsonian
Institute as America's First Supermarket.