These Beloved Mom and Pop Shops Have Stood the Test of Time

Businesses wanting to attract customers often boast that they’re “family-owned and operated.” The personal touch and relatability make it easy to feel like you’re supporting a business that shares your values rather than some generic, big box store or corporate brand.

More than 24.2 million businesses in the U.S. are family-owned. But many mega companies started out as family businesses and some remain so.

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A key to longevity is maintaining the family values these companies started out with in the beginning. Keeping business in the family ensures that the people running the show know it inside and out. Having a personal stake in the outcome often becomes less about money and more about passing on a legacy.

Founders who start these big family businesses also invest in their customers’ experiences and the quality of their products: treating your customers like they are part of your family goes a long way to getting repeat business.

The following businesses had humble beginnings but have grown into monster brands:

Courtesy of Chick-fil-A, Inc.

Chick-fil-A

If you’ve ever been to a Chick-fil-A, you know the customer service is friendly and polite and always ends with, “My pleasure.” While many quick-service food joints cook up chicken nuggets, none does it the way Chick-fil-A does.

Since 1946, when it began as The Dwarf Grill in the Atlanta suburbs, the business has grown to run restaurants in 48 states plus Washington D.C. and Canada. Founder Truett Cathy, who died in 2014, passed the company to his son, Dan, who operates it with his son Andrew, the current CEO.

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Truett Cathy, a Bible-following philanthropist who has given away millions to his employees so they can afford college, said he “wasn't in the chicken business, but the people business.” His legacy of investing in the people involved in his business  — from customers to employees — lives on to this day.

Walmart

Now one of the biggest and best-known retailers in the world, Walmart was started in 1962 by Sam Walton in Rogers, Arkansas. By 1967, the Walton family owned 24 stores. It was first listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1972, when it had 51 stores. In 1993 it celebrated its first $1 billion sales week.