• Retiring as Publix CEO, Baylor alum leaves legacy of service

    Ed Crenshaw

    After more than four decades with the company, Baylor alumnus Ed Crenshaw, BBA ’73, is retiring as CEO of Publix, one of the nation’s five largest grocery retailers.

    Crenshaw joined the Florida-based supermarket chain shortly after graduating from Baylor and was named CEO in 2008. It’s fitting that the company he’s led is known for service (and also for its prominent green and white color scheme), since Crenshaw’s focus on service dates back to his days as an early Student Foundation president at Baylor.

    Crenshaw joined StuFu shortly after it was formed (wearing those green and white stripes proudly), and eventually served as president from 1972-73. He says his Student Foundation experience was “transformational, and one that I think helped shaped me into the adult I ultimately became. You draw upon the lessons you learn, the most important of which was learning to serve others.” Today, you can see a tangible sign of his legacy in the Ed Crenshaw Student Foundation Center, which provided Student Foundation with its first dedicated on-campus home.

    Throughout Crenshaw’s tenure, Publix has garnered accolades for its commitment to service, regularly ranking as the “best supermarket in the country… in terms of customer satisfaction.” That commitment has resonated with shoppers, who have made Publix “a beloved brand — one that carries a passionate cult following almost unheard of in the supermarket industry.”

    For his efforts, Crenshaw will receive the Grocery Manufacturers Association’s highest honor this summer. And though retiring as CEO, Crenshaw will remain with Publix as chairman of the employee-owned company’s board. He’s passing on a strong organization to his successor; in an industry where conventional wisdom has been to cut down on service to stay price-competitive, Publix is widely considered to be the most profitable supermarket chain in the nation.

    And how did Crenshaw spend his last day as CEO? By meeting with employees who were participating in service projects across the region as part of Publix Serves Day, a day of giving back to the community.

    Sic ’em, Ed Crenshaw!