The popular QuikTrip convenience store chain has developed a strong culture focused on its people, not just the corporation, according to Chairman and CEO Chet Cadieux, who addressed a sold-out crowd of 350 at Wednesday’s Friends of Finance luncheon at The University of Tulsa.
It’s so strong, in fact, that some people may say it’s a “cult” – in a good way, joked Cadieux, who is known as much for his wit as his business acumen.
That culture, focused on its more than 30,000 employees, is the reason the company has received so many accolades since its founding in Tulsa in 1958 with a $15,000 investment from businessmen Burt Holmes and Chester Cadieux, Chet’s father.
The private corporation currently boasts 1,130 stores in 18 states and needs thousands of dedicated employees to run all those locations. However, Cadieux, who received his bachelor’s degree from UTulsa’s Collins College of Business in 1989, said QT executives are picky about their hires; only about 1.5% of applicants will ever become QuikTrip employees.
Cadieux shared a quote that his father shared with him: “If you’re not taking care of customers, you better be taking care of the people who are.”
The next and final Friends of Finance luncheon for the academic year will be held on April 16 and will feature Devon Energy CEO Rick Muncrief. Proceeds from the program fund scholarships for students in UTulsa’s Collins College of Business.