Bringing Your Community to Life

By Micah Paul

courtesy of Reasors.com

“Bring your table to life” is the current motto of Reasor’s foods. Simple sounding at first, it has a more resounding effect when one see’s how the motto is lived out through the employees and business culture at Reasor’s.

This week, I had the opportunity to sit down with Amanda Russell and Lauren Jones Cross - two members of the marketing and public relations team at Reasor’s Foods. Together we tackled some questions on the community of the greater Tulsa area and how Reasor’s are an active part of it.

Reasor’s Foods was founded in Tahlequah Oklahoma in May of 1963 by Larry Reasor. From the get-go, Reasor’s vision was to provide a quality grocery experience for his community with outstanding customer service. His vision and goals are still very apparent and is reflected throughout the company’s culture.

Reasor’s has always been a local company; never reaching farther north than Tahlequah or farther south than Jenks. Since its inception, Reasor’s has always stayed local for many reasons. One of the original intentions that is still true today was the ease of access to all the stores. Larry loved being able to easily access his stores and keep his thumb on the pulse of business. Today Jeff Reasor—Larry Reasors son and current CEO—and his home office team embrace this idea so they can focus more of their energy on their stores and local community.

Reasor’s remains very active in the community through donations and food drives throughout the year. Last year, through its Food 2 families food drive, Reasor’s raised over $150,000 worth of groceries for families in need. On top of giving back, they provide support to other local companies, allowing them with an opportunity to sell their products to their local community. Today Reasor’s houses over 200 local businesses products. From Lomah dairy to head country barbeque sauce; you name it, Reasor’s carries it.

Reasor’s started a program in 2011 involving re-usable bags as well. For every re-usable bag you use at the store, Reasor’s donates 6 cents to the Oklahoma community food bank. Since its start, Reasor’s has donated $211,000 to the community food bank - roughly $3,000 a month! On top of that, each month a strategic sponsorship team meets at the home office of Reasor’s to discuss sponsorship requests and possible investment options in the community.

Last year for Thanksgiving, Reasor’s partnered with the Tulsa police department and sponsored a “Random Acts Of Kindness Day”. Police officers would pull people over, but instead of giving them tickets they would give out 100$ Reasor’s gift cards instead. “Bring your table to life” starts to make more sense.

Amanda offered: “whether it’s your apartment table, picnic table, or dining room table we want to be the grocery store that provides you with quality food to create memories, we want to make your eating experience the best it can be”. Whether its great customer service, local outreach, or local company support, Reasor’s not only wants to bring your table to life, but also your community.