Here’s a surprising fact: Hy-Vee was actually founded in 1930 by two guys who just wanted to sell eggs without having to fight a chicken. It’s one of the largest employee-owned companies in the U.S., which means your cashier might literally own a tiny piece of the store. Try getting that kind of loyalty from a Kroger self-checkout machine that yells at you for putting your bag in the wrong spot.
Kroger, on the other hand, is a publicly traded monster with nearly half a million employees. That’s more people than the population of Wyoming. If Hy-Vee is your friendly neighbor who waters your plants, Kroger is that neighbor who buys the whole apartment building and raises your rent—but gives you a free discount card with a cartoon snail on it.
In 2014, a rumor actually spread on social media that Kroger had bought Hy-Vee. The response from Hy-Vee? They issued a hilariously polite denial, probably written on a Post-it note: "Thank you for the inquiry! No. We are not. Have a nice day." They didn't even hire a PR firm. The Midwest doesn't need drama, it needs frozen pizzas.
First Publix, now employee owned Hy-Vee is moving into some areas
So, Why Does Everyone Think Kroger Owns Everything?
Kroger is like the Darth Vader of groceries—it just keeps absorbing smaller chains. It owns over 2,700 stores across the U.S. Hy-Vee has a cozy 280-something stores, mostly in the Midwest. Kroger has its corporate logo on everything; Hy-Vee puts its name on a bag of milk and calls it a day.
Another reason for the confusion: price matching. Hy-Vee will shamelessly match Kroger’s weekly ad prices. It looks like a secret handshake between mafia families, but it’s just capitalism being weird. Kroger lowers the price on chicken, Hy-Vee lowers theirs, and you win because you just saved a dollar on a drumstick.
The only thing Kroger and Hy-Vee share is a mutual, silent hatred for Walmart. That’s the one thing that unites all grocery stores: fear of the big blue vest. It's like the Axis Powers, but with more avocados.
