Pros
It is very hard to pinpoint concise pros of this company, as individual experiences can vary from store to store depending on numerous factors, such as management, workers, and overall moral of store. Therefore, it is indeed difficult to give a review that fits the viewpoint of every individual because of such discrepancies within the stores. I will do my best to iterate on my own behalf and what I have experienced throughout my past and current tenure at Stop & Shop. Pros of Stop & Shop include: -generous benefits for part-time employees after 3 years. - growth of business due to the acquisition of former Foodtown and Pathmark stores. -Ahold (who owns Stop & Shop) has a wealth of money-- there is plenty of money to be made if one enters the realm of management and up. - growth of delivery service-- Peapod delivers to numerous customers and businesses. This means more jobs with the company.
Cons
I have worked part-time for Stop & Shop for almost 8 years. I have seen many managers and workers come and go. No two managers are alike and management styles differ tremendously. From my own personal experience, the overall moral of this company is decidedly on the lower spectrum. Management aside, the moral of the workers is also equally low if not lower. Frequent complaints I have witnessed/experienced along with the cons include: - low rate of pay - slow advancement and promotion (if there even is one). Workers struggle for years in getting a full-time position from a part-time position. The company relies heavily on its part-time workers. - slow raises (at least for part-time workers) - inconsistent management/management styles - not enough help-workers per shift. (This one is huge. Stop & Shop seems to subscribe to the notion that less is more--but this does not always prove to be the case. Because of this, employees are expected to do more than he or she is capable of) - inconsistent/non-existent communication between management and co-workers. Many times, the two seem to be on different pages, which hurts the overall moral of the store. Stop & Stop truly is an interesting company, in that its identity is confused and its messages/ideas are unclear. It touts ideas of cleanliness and feelings of comfortableness and convenience, yet the overall selection of food pales in comparison to its main competitor, Shoprite. While it is true that Stop & Shop does a fairly adequate job at keeping a "neat" look, this alone does not make up for the lack of convenience and comfortableness that stems from its poor selection of food. This company is very big near its headquarters (New England area), and is, rightfully so, very popular in those states. In New Jersey, this company is very much a mixed bag. Stop & Shop does have its loyal customers who strictly shop at this company only; other customers come because they either do not like the heavy traffic of its top competition (Shoprite), or because it was admittedly convenient at the time. With that being said, Stop & Shop seems to strive to be number 1 in terms of most popular and desirable supermarket, but ultimately falls short to its main competitor (at least in the NJ area). Inconsistent management and sometimes higher-than-normal prices may contribute to this and I believe that Stop & Shop has a long way to go if it is to become number 1 in this area. The cons seem to speak for itself, and because of them, I believe that Stop & Shop is being held back. Customers can sense if the moral of the store is low and if problems are imminent; they do not want to shop in that type of environment. This, along with the cons listed and the overall prices of the store, all contribute in making this company second fiddle of what it could possibly become through proper/different training of employees, better and consistent management styles, more help/workers, and clear/concise communication between all levels of management and workers.