Steve Edwards Jr., special projects manager, GES Inc.
When your last name is on the front of the building, it’s easy to assume you’ll end up in the family business at some point. Having been around the grocery business for as long as he can remember, Steve Edwards Jr. grew up paying his dues in various roles around his family’s namesake Edwards Food Giant and Edwards Cash Saver stores.
“I remember going up to the office and hanging out with my dad as a child,” he said. “I would often help carry out groceries or stock shelves when I was little, on busy days around Thanksgiving and Christmas. As I got older, I started working as a cashier.”
Still, the grandson of GES Inc. founder Oral Edwards didn’t expect to jump into a leadership role quite so soon after finishing up his degree at the University of Arkansas.
“About a month before graduation in May 2018, my brother-in-law, [GES Vice President] Paul Rowton, asked me to meet him for lunch,” Edwards said. “We met in Conway and spent the afternoon discussing the possibility of me coming to work for the company.”
Edwards and his wife, Lexie, moved to Little Rock that year. Once on board and officially christened the special projects manager, Edwards’ main task was leading the launch of Edwards Curbside, the company’s new online shopping platform. Though online grocery shopping was still a relatively new concept, Edwards’ arrival could not have come at a better time. A few years later, the COVID-19 pandemic would trigger an explosion in online shopping; thanks to the groundwork laid by Edwards, the company’s Food Giant and Cash Saver stores weren’t stuck playing catch-up.
Edwards also had a front-row seat to the other effects COVID had on the traditional business model. One-way aisles, plexiglass dividers, setting up warehouses to combat product shortages and bracing for the influx of new online users — he and the rest of the team had their work cut out for them. That the business didn’t just scrape by, but tackled those challenges head-on, is a testament to the 60-year-old company’s leadership and culture.
“Our team members showed up to serve the members of their community when they needed them most,” Edwards said. “I’m beyond proud of the way our team stepped up.”
Nowadays, Edwards continues to oversee Edwards Curbside, as well as the company’s rewards and catering programs and marketing efforts. He’s been recognized as a growing industry talent, enjoying a place in both the National Grocers Association Emerging Leaders Share Group and on the retail technology advisory board for the Alliance Retail Group.
The day-to-day tasks of a special projects manager can be as numerous and varied as the “special projects” themselves, and Edwards appreciates that unpredictability. Some days he finds himself glued to a desk all day, navigating a sea of emails and meetings. Other times, he’s on-site at one of the stores, walking the aisles during a remodel or handling any number of other situations.
“I can’t tell you how many days I drive to work with a plan in mind for what I want to accomplish for the day, only for that plan to be thrown out the window by the time the day gets started because something needs to be taken care of at one of the stores,” he said.
Despite the capricious nature of the work, seeing the look on customers’ faces when they enter a new or remodeled store never gets old. With 14 stores between the two brands and more in the works, Edwards is optimistic about the chain’s continued growth throughout the state. And, as part of the next generation of GES leadership, Edwards is also clear-eyed about the importance of learning from his elders and setting the example for the ones who will come after him — like his son Elijah, who at 1 1/2 years old still has plenty of time to learn the ropes.
“Having that push and pull between the older and younger generation helps us progress forward at a steady pace,” he said. “The younger generation helps usher in new ideas and ways of thinking, and the older generation makes sure that we are staying true to our roots and uses their experience in the industry to keep us on the right path.
“We will continue to battle grocery behemoths. We will never have the buying power or access to technology that the big names have, but we will always win when it comes to things like product quality, freshness and customer service. My grandfather always said that being in the grocery business means being in the people business. If we remember who we are and how we got here, we can always be successful.”
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