With this international success in view, World Trade Center Tacoma presented the company with the sixth annual Globe Award in March. The honor not only recognizes the company's contribution to expanding Tacoma's trade capacity through jobs and revenue, it also applauds the winner's community contributions. Giving back Supervalu employees raise funds for a wide range of local organizations, and the company often contracts with Tacoma Goodwill Industries. Education projects, however, hold a special place in the staff's hearts. For the past few years, Supervalu has adopted two first-grade classes at Rogers Elementary School in east Tacoma.
Students come by the offices to read to employees.
The staff, in turn, visits the school and reads to the students in both English and other languages. During the Christmas holiday season, they help the students build gingerbread houses. The company also provides a summer internship for college and university students, and works with international business classes from the University of Washington on special projects. About 90 percent of Supervalu International's sales are to Pacific Rim countries. Japan remains the company's biggest market, accounting for about a quarter of its business, Witzleben says.