Publix

Publix Super Markets, Inc., doing business as Publix, is an employee-owned American supermarket chain headquartered in Lakeland, Florida. Founded in 1930 by George W. Jenkins, Publix is a private corporation that is wholly owned by present and past employees and members of the Jenkins family. Publix operates throughout the Southeastern United States, with locations in Florida (898), Georgia (219), Alabama (96), South Carolina (74), Tennessee (62), North Carolina (62), Virginia (24), and Kentucky (7). Kentucky is the most recent addition to the Publix footprint, with the company's first store in that state having opened on January 10, 2024, in Louisville. Publix operates 1,442 store locations across the Southeast. As of May 2026, Publix employs about 260,000 people at its retail locations, cooking schools, corporate offices, nine grocery distribution centers, and eleven manufacturing facilities. The manufacturing facilities produce its dairy, deli, bakery, and other food products. The National Center for Employee Ownership states that Publix has the largest employee stock ownership plan of almost 6,500 organizations in the U.S.