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Annual Global Sales
$38,000,000,000
Total U.S. Sales
$43 billion in 2023
Total U.S. Stores
More than 435 stores in the U.S. and Mexico
Headquarters
San Antonio, Texas
Key Facts
- Ascended to the top position in Dunnhumby's 2022 Retail Preference Index, a spot it held onto for 2023
- Operates under five banners in the U.S.: H-E-B, H-E-B Plus, Central Market, Joe V’s Smart Shop and Mi Tienda
- The Texas-only chain is the No. 1 food retailer in the Austin, San Antonio, Corpus Christi and Rio Grande Valley markets
- Acquired on-demand delivery company Favor Delivery in 2018
- Ranked No. 2 on the 2022 Axios Harris Poll 100 reputation ranking
- Ranked No. 2 in the Grocery & Convenience Stores category in Newsweek’s 2024 list of America’s Most Trustworthy Companies.
Key Executives
H-E-B
- Chairman and Chief Executive Officer: Charles Butt
- Chief Operating Officer: Roxanne Orsak
- President: Craig Boyan
Favor Delivery
- Chief Digital Officer & CEO: Keith Duncan
- Chief Product Officer: Rachel Losh
- Chief Technology Officer: Steve Romney
- Chief Legal Officer: Daniel Guzman
- Senior Vice President, Marketing: Erin Forsyth
- Market Position and Strategy Overview
- Must-Know Terms
- Promotional Strategy
- Merchandising
- Collaborative Alliances
- Displays and Signage
- In-Store Media
- Store Formats/Growth
- Special Departments/Services
- Customer Segments
- Internet Marketing
- Retail Media
- Mobile Marketing
- Social Media
- E-Commerce
- Circulars
- Loyalty Programs
- Private Label
- Cause /Community Programs
- Advertising Strategy
- Solution Providers
- Sponsorships
- Marketing Expenditures
Market Position and Strategy Overview
Market Position and Strategy Overview
Two seemingly contradictory facts define H-E-B’s market positioning. One is that no other supermarket chain is more firmly attached to its regional roots. With the exception of locations in the bordering nation of Mexico, all stores are in Texas. H-E-B is the largest privately held company in the state and the 12th largest in the U.S. The chain infuses its Lone Star State heritage into nearly all marketing activity; both in-store and out, images and themes almost always celebrate Texas.
The other, somewhat incongruous fact, is that few other supermarket chains aim to make the shopping experience as worldly and cosmopolitan. Company executives travel the country and world to find new products, store concepts, supply-chain strategies and other best practices in retailing. Store associates even visit the Culinary Institute of America to develop new recipes and skills.
H-E-B's ability to embrace such disparate tactics and make them work in sync is augmented by its deep understanding of local market preferences. The chain is particularly adept at responding to the needs of Texas' large and diverse Hispanic community. For example, San Antonio-area stores cater to a heavily Mexican-American constituency, while Houston stores carry items popular among that area's Central and South American demographic groups. The retailer even varies interior design and construction to better serve each neighborhood.
The company also places a great emphasis on service, which translates into the various demo stations and interactive destinations in stores, as well as its commitment to fresh and locally grown foods. Fittingly, the chain's customer satisfaction and loyalty ratings are among the highest in the supermarket channel, and its private-label portfolio and in-store experience have long drawn accolades from retail organizations and other industry watchers.
Given H-E-B's status as a family-owned business, the chain grows more slowly than other top supermarket operators. It generally has preferred not to rush store growth, performing years of research and planning before breaking ground, but it has continued to open stores, especially in the Dallas-Forth Worth market, and grow its store formats. (See Store Formats/Growth.)
To keep pace with the rapidly growing market in Texas, however, the company relies on H-E-B Plus, a superstore format that debuted in San Juan in 2005. General merchandise that sells well in these stores determines what will be sold in the traditional H-E-B locations.
Due to its various formats, the retailer has an eclectic mix of competitors: H-E-B supermarkets compete against Kroger and Safeway’s Randalls; Central Market battles with Austin-based Whole Foods Market; H-E-B Plus stores take on Walmart supercenters; and discount grocer Joe V’s Smart Shop competes with Trader Joe’s and Aldi.
Must-Know Terms
Must-Know Terms
- Central Market: An innovative, more upscale store concept targeted to "foodies" and designed to make shopping for food as enjoyable as cooking it. The format apparently has proved more buzz-worthy than practical, and still encompasses only nine locations.
- Primo Picks: A merchandising program that highlights locally manufactured specialty and private-label products.
- Combo Loco: A frequent marketing program that awards a designated free product or two with purchase of a related SKU.
- Beauty Pick of the Month: An ongoing promotion in which 10 Texas bloggers review a cosmetic or personal care product chosen by the retailer and showcased in circular features and emails.
- Savings Roundup: A periodic bulk-purchase incentive offered on a specific manufacturer's products, product categories, or private label SKUs. Procter & Gamble and Kimberly Clark are frequent participants.
Thought Starters
- Localize it. H-E-B takes an almost maniacal focus on Texas themes in its marketing; find a way to make your brands relate to the Lone Star State.
- Tap into the retailer’s educational and hunger relief campaigns during relevant merchandising seasons.
- Think outside the kitchen: many of H-E-B’s programs involve crafting and decorating ideas employing food products.
- This is Texas, so Hispanic-targeting campaigns are especially welcome.
Promotional Strategy
![a can next to a book shelf filled with books](https://assets1.p2pi.com/s3fs-public/styles/hero/s3/2022-07/1_29_20hebsanantoniotx14_0comboloco.jpeg)
Promotional Strategy
Although H-E-B regularly trumpets itself as an everyday low price retailer, it employs a heavy dose of weekly price promotions to drive traffic. Circular features, store signage and digital activity emphasize savings programs, including buy-one-get-one free deals and digital coupon offers.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the retailer regularly conducted events and contests to drive store traffic and increase basket size through a highly regarded sampling program that scatters kiosks and “take one” tables throughout the store.
Seasonal marketing campaigns stretch across multiple ad vehicles, including P-O-P materials, TV spots, run-of-press newspaper ads, circulars and social media activity. Self-driven sweepstakes or manufacturer-sponsored contests often accompany the programs.
Though most of the retailer’s programs put the primary emphasis on private labels, H-E-B regularly incorporates product vendors into seasonal umbrella campaigns, such as holiday and back-to-school. (See “Collaborative Alliances.”)
Ongoing Programs:
- Combo Loco: A weekly promotion that dangles one or two free products with purchase of a related SKU. A number of offers are presented in every circular, with private labels getting the bulk of the activity, though national brands also can represent the purchase requirement or the incentive. Often, the item purchased is less expensive than the freebie.
- Meal Deal: Similar to Combo Loco, the weekly Meal Deal offers multiple free SKUs, often from national brands, with purchase of a fully cooked entree or fixings for a meal via in-store coupons.
- Primo Picks: A marketing and merchandising program that spotlights new private label, limited-edition and choice products (never national brands) and highlights H-E-B’s local ties via circular features, endcap displays and other signage. The product selection changes once every month or two.
- Savings Roundup: A weekly marketing program, typically leveraging a major manufacturer, that usually dangles $5-$10 off a future receipt with a qualifying purchase. The offer often ties thematically to Procter & Gamble’s monthly brandSaver FSI event.
- H-E-B Wellness: A key marketing platform designed to help shoppers "eat better, move more and live well" that is executed through a number of health-themed promotions. This includes the Resolution Solutions campaign (see below), color-coded shelf labels, dietitian/nutrition consultations and cooking contests.
- Resolution Solutions: An annual, New Year’s campaign designed to help shoppers keep their New Year’s resolution to eat healthier, get organized or get in shape through recipes, tips and deals on healthy living products.
- Second Saturdays: Monthly pharmacy events providing free health screenings and post-screening consultations that have been postponed until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program has on occasion expanded storewide for activities such as fitness demonstrations and sampling. CPG sponsors get mention on signage and collateral.
Merchandising
Merchandising Strategy
The retailer empowers individual store managers to make merchandising decisions that reflect their unique customer base and strengthen the store’s community focus. Central Market stores in the urban area of Dallas, for example, stock higher amounts of prepared meals, while a suburban store in Plano caters more to home cooks. Additionally, the Mi Tienda locations (see Store Formats/Growth) carry mostly goods from Mexico and Central America; one hybrid store that offers an extensive selection of kosher foods in a heavily Jewish section of San Antonio is even named Alon Market. ("Alon" means “oak” in Hebrew).
H-E-B is considered to have one of the cleaner and more engaging shopping environments in the supermarket sector. Stores feature high ceilings, large windows and aisles that are relatively free of clutter. Signage and decor pay heavy homage to the chain's Texas locale, showcasing cowboy imagery and graphics of local sports franchises. For example, the retailer’s new store in the Houston-area offers a nod to neighboring NASA with a metal shingle design that mimics the underside of a space shuttle.
The stores are laid out in the typical supermarket manner, with fresh foods, health and beauty, pharmacy and service departments located around the perimeter and packaged goods in center aisles. They employ fairly standard category groupings and merchandising practices, carrying about 37,000 SKUs on average. H-E-B has continued to expand and emphasize its selection of private-label products, prepared foods, and natural and organic items in recent years.
The retailer also makes frequent use of sampling: “Cooking Connections” demo kitchens operate for much of the day and sampling kiosks are found throughout the store.
Other types of perimeter merchandising offered at some stores includes:
- Made in-store squeezed juices and guacamole;
- A seafood market offering a global assortment;
- Sushi, fried rice and noodle bowls, and poke bowls made daily;
- A meat market, offering natural, prime and Wagyu meat cut in-store by certified meat cutters as well as beef ground in-store daily;
- A full-service scratch bakery and tortilleria, offering a selection of breads baked daily, tortillas, desserts, pastries and custom cakes;
- A cheese department with more than 300 specialty, local and imported cheeses, along with an assortment of large cheese platters and boards;
- A wine and beer selection, selling more than 2,000 bottles of wine and more than 300 beers. Some of these stores also employ two Certified WSET II partners for tasting, pairings and customer assistance.
H-E-B Plus stores are more brightly lit than traditional supermarkets and house more elaborate food stations that are identified by large, illuminated ceiling mobiles of various shapes and colors. General merchandise departments, such as apparel, baby and entertainment, exhibit distinct aesthetics, with fixtures and layout varying by category, but share a common use of large-scale graphics and bold colors. The stores offer approximately 77,000 SKUs consisting of typical grocery products, upscale food items found in Central Market stores, and general merchandise. Cafes and coffee bars also are often in store.
Central Market's warmly lighted, earth-tone environment reflects the banner's positioning as a gourmet destination. Stores emphasize their highly local tastes, with exteriors that range from ultra-modern facades to barn-like structures. Similarly, store interiors boast many personalized touches, such as handwritten signs to identify product categories. Perishables are merchandised on wooden carts or in glass cases, resembling open-air markets or small gourmet shops. Services offered include catering, cooking classes and floral arrangements. There are also in-store cafes, hot food lines and sandwich bars, and seating areas.
In contrast to the other chains, Joe V’s Smart Shop carries only about 5,000 SKUs, most of which are in grocery categories. The layout resembles a warehouse store, albeit much smaller.
Healthy Living
Most H-E-B and H-E-B Plus stores have a "Healthy Living" department (marked by green banners and ceiling mobiles) that merchandises bulk foods, including nuts, grains, dried fruits and snack mixes, as well as vitamins, supplements, health products, and natural and organic personal-care and beauty items. The retailer’s newest store partners this department with a team of registered dieticians and culinary experts to offer full-time on-site and telehealth nutrition services to shoppers. These services include nutrition counseling, nutrition diagnostic testing, dietician-led shopping support and meal-planning services.
Nature’s Harvest
Natural and organic foods are merchandised in the "Nature's Harvest" department, while bulk-food dispensers holding candy, coffee, cereal, nuts and other items line a dedicated aisle in Central Market and some H-E-B stores.
Thumbtack
In 2023, H-E-B partnered with Thumbtack. Approximately 300 stores have branded displays from the home management platform, which lets customers scan QR codes and access third-party services like pet care (grooming, sitting, walking, training) or home services (lawn care, cleaning).
Collaborative Alliances
Collaborative Alliances
H-E-B is considered to be among the retailers most willing to collaborate with national brands, and also is rated highly for its ability to activate programs based on vendor-supplied insights and consistently integrates programs across multiple touch points. However, it isn't quite a pushover when it comes to accepting brand displays.
H-E-B has a developed a unique market information portal and vendor collaboration platform in conjunction with IRi. The portal provides access to information including custom geographies and category analysis based on the retailer’s own terms and definitions.
The retailer often joins with national brands to stage exclusive sweepstakes and cause campaigns, leveraging such internal media as in-store publications. Circulars regularly promote short-term bulk-purchase promotions, advertised through full- or half-page features in circulars and executed via in-store coupons.
The retailer regularly joins with Johnson & Johnson to conduct overlays to the manufacturer's "Healthy Essentials" marketing platform, and teams with Procter & Gamble on a variety of activity that runs the gamut from basic promotions to testing of new category concepts.
Among noteworthy collaborative activity:
- P&G Roundup: a semi-annual, two-week bulk purchase incentive that ties into the manufacturer’s brandSaver FSI drop and gets feature and display support.
- Meal Maker Challenge: H-E-B and ConAgra partner during back to school season for a “Pin-to-Win Meal Maker Challenge” on Pinterest.
H-E-B maintains a help center for suppliers on supplier.heb.com/ where it offers guides for item setup and management plus other information.
Displays and Signage
Displays and Signage
H-E-B accepts a variety of vendor-supplied temporary and long-term P-O-P materials, including pallets, floorstands, headers, dump bins, shelf trays, power wings and cut cases.
Larger stores also will accommodate spectaculars, which generally have a seasonal theme (or are the domain of DSD beer distributors).
Power aisles mostly feature generic permanent displays, such as pallets and four-way fixtures. The displays often carry vendor-supplied shelf trays and other small merchandising vehicles. Gondolas in some departments, such as beauty and wine, receive an upscale treatment through the use of backlighting or wooden materials. Mobile fixtures are common in the produce department, where fruits and vegetables are merchandised on casters, dump bins or case stacks.
Most endcaps are used to promote the retailer's own seasonal programs or periodic efforts, such as Primo Picks or Combo Loco. National brands sometimes provide signage in conjunction with temporary endcap placement, but permanent brand-supplied endcaps are rare. Often, the endcaps have a multi-product focus, such as merchandizing the necessary SKUs to bake a dessert or host a crawfish boil.
H-E-B sometimes does accept branded permanent in-line systems, typically for category management purposes (for soup or candy, for instance).
Freestanding displays are often positioned around the store perimeter; floorstands placed next to endcaps are generally of better quality, suggesting a longer-term presence. For the most part, stores otherwise maintain clean aisles.
The retailer will sometimes borrow equity from relevant brands to help communicate seasonal themes on co-branded signage, such as graphics from Hershey Co. and Mars, Inc. brands on Halloween materials.
Central Market
Central Market accepts far fewer vendor displays, limiting the signage to enhance the perception of quality and variety rather than to provide secondary locations for high-selling items. The chain mostly uses case stacks and generic fixtures in power aisles, but accepts some higher-quality freestanding displays, typically for beverage and other impulse-buy categories. Signs, such as headers, stanchions and ceiling hangers, primarily communicate quality or category information. (See Central Market Style Guide in Attached Documents.)
Joe V's Smart Shop
Even fewer vendor-supplied displays are accepted at Joe V’s Smart Shop, where most products are brought to the sales floor by forklift and therefore stay in pallet form on the shelves. Perimeter gondolas carry cut cases, shelf trays are used in the checkout aisle, and dump bins will occasionally be deployed in the produce department.
Mi Tienda
Mi Tienda generally doesn’t accept vendor-supplied displays, but does stack cases between center aisles and the perimeter. Brightly colored ceiling signs communicate pricing and directional information. Along the perimeter, permanent facades modeled after Mexican storefronts communicate category information.
For H-E-B's "Retail Ready Packaging" regulations for private label products, see Attached Documents at right.
In-Store Media
In-Store Media
Compared with most other supermarket chains, H-E-B contracts with relatively few third-party media operators. Available programs include:
- In-store radio (provider information not available)
- Checkout coupons and other purchase-based incentives from Catalina Marketing, St. Petersburg, FL
- On-pack coupon programs from AMI In-Store, Framingham, MA, that cross-promote national brand products with private-label SKUs
- Health screening kiosks operated by Chicago-based higi that are equipped with both store-facing "attract" screens and an interactive private screen. Advertising and media sales for the network are handled by San Francisco-based Premier Retail Networks (PRN).
- Shelf-edge media: Promotions advertised via the primary at-shelf price labels/shelf strips provided by Little Rock, AR-based Vestcom International.
Store Formats/Growth
Store Formats/Growth
H-E-B operates more than 435 stores in Texas and Mexico with the vast majority in Texas. Its Texas stores are concentrated in the state's eastern markets around San Antonio, Houston, Corpus Christi and in areas south of Dallas. And despite its forays into alternative concepts, conventional supermarkets still dominate the portfolio.
The retailer also purchased several properties around the Dallas-Fort Worth region during the past several years, and expanded into the North Texas market.
H-E-B
H-E-B's conventional supermarkets average 70,000 square feet and carry roughly 37,000 SKUs. Depending on the needs of the neighborhood, new stores can range from 45,000 to more than 100,000 square feet. H-E-B also continues to update existing stores with upgraded and new departments.
Stores flow in the typical supermarket manner, with fresh foods, health and beauty, pharmacy and service departments located around the perimeter and packaged goods in center aisles. They employ fairly standard category groupings and merchandising practice. The design boasts high ceilings, large windows and open aisles. Some stores also have tortilla stands. A new store in Manvel, Texas, boasts a True Texas BBQ restaurant in addition to curbside pickup, ready-made meals and more.
H-E-B Plus
H-E-B's "superstores" range in size from 120,000 to 180,000 square feet and devote about one-fourth of their space to non-grocery items. Stores carry a full complement of grocery and health and beauty items and up to 40,000 additional SKUs of general merchandise. The concept now comprises about 40 locations, including a number of remodeled supermarkets.
H-E-B Fresh Bites
H-E-B is rebranding its 12 convenience stores in Texas to the H-E-B Fresh Bites format. In addition to standard c-store fare like soft drinks and snacks, the new stores offer more produce, prepared foods and quick meal options. Converted stores also house True Texas Tacos, a specialty taco concept restaurant that serves regional fare.
Central Market
Central Market is often referred to by locals as “Gucci-B” because of their vast assortment of gourmet foods and “foodie” ambiance. The nine Texas stores range in size from 70,000 to 90,000 square feet and carry a selection of mostly fresh, specialty, natural and organic, and health-related grocery SKUs. Originally built with a serpentine pathway, they were redesigned to allow movement between departments, granting shoppers greater autonomy over their trip. The stores carry specialty and upscale food items, offering cheeses, baked goods, chef prepared meals, meats, produce, seafood, wine and beer, and specialty snacks. They also stock a limited assortment of household goods.
Some departments have an upscale flair. The wine department, for instance, merchandises thousands of SKUs in cases and on wooden fixtures supported by informative graphics.
H-E-B also has unveiled a handful of "hybrid" supermarkets that surpass 120,000 square feet and combine some of the general merchandise and non-food categories from H-E-B Plus with the gourmet selection of Central Market. They also offer cafes with in-house seating.
The retailer often uses Central Market locations, particularly in Houston, to test new concepts and layouts. In 2017, it finished a $10 million upgrade to its Westheimer location in Houston, which added 10,000 additional square feet (for a total 85,000 square feet), an expanded produce section, and a larger selection of specialty items such as olive oil, wine, and international food. It also equipped the store to make its own chocolate. H-E-B plans to adapt aspects from this location to other H-E-B and Central Market locations across the state.
Mi Tienda
The two stores are 63,000-square-foot and 97,000-square-foot. Both channel the aesthetic of a Mexican village, with each department housed in a pueblo-like structure and carrying a wide variety of targeted items tailored to South American shoppers. They are staffed entirely by Spanish-speaking employees. Specialty departments consist of the Panaderia (bakery), Aguas Frescas bar (fresh juice bar), Carniceria (fresh cut meats), Cevicheria (seafood), and Tortilleria (freshly made corn tortillas). The stores also have “La Cocina de Mi Tienda,” a fast-casual Mexican restaurant. The locations also have in-store banking centers. H-E-B likens the format to a Latino version of Central Market.
H-E-B also operates seven discount stores under the Mi Tienda del Ahorra banner in Mexico.
Joe V’s Smart Shop
Stores are 55,000 square feet on average and designed in a warehouse style with cement floors. They have standard departments — grocery, frozen, produce, meat, seafood and bakery — along with general merchandise, including electronics and apparel. There are 10 stores in the Houston area, and H-E-B is building more in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. The first Dallas store opened in June 2024, and the second is slated to open in the first half of 2025.
Special Departments/Services
Special Departments/Services
Specialty departments found in most H-E-B stores include floral, photo processing, seasonal and liquor. Due to an emphasis on tailoring stores to neighborhoods, departments offered vary by location. Some have drive-through pharmacies, while others have adjoining gas stations and car washes. Most stores contain full-service pharmacies and a Business Center that handles bill payment services; several also process hunting and fishing licenses.
Some H-E-B Plus stores and the hybrid locations boast foodservice counters and sit-down cafes for in-store dining that are modeled after Central Market's "Cafe on the Run (see below).
- Cooking Connection: 51 supermarkets and 18 H-E-B Plus stores have “Cooking Connection” demonstration kitchens staffed by culinary professionals who conduct demonstrations and cooking classes. Ingredients and recipe cards are stocked in the kitchens so shoppers can grab what they need to prepare the dishes at home.
- Texas Backyard: Some H-E-B Plus stores have this stand-alone department for grilling equipment, lawn and garden supplies, and plants. Connected to the main store but with a separate entrance and checkout, the department occupies approximately 20,000 square feet.
- Mia's Mirror: A store-within-a-store format for fashion and accessories that launched in 2012 and is in nine H-E-B Plus stores as of 2017.
- Cafe on the Run: Café on the Run offers ready‑to‑go chef‑prepared meals, snacks and side dishes from flavorful salads, ready‑to‑eat dinners like meatloaf, grilled flank steak and lemon garlic chicken, as well as wraps and Italian food options. The cafe is located in nearly 30 H-E-B and H-E-B plus stores in Central Texas, Houston, and San Antonio. Several H-E-B's have ready-to-go food, including South Flo Pizza, True Texas Tacos, and Flaming Bird. There is a True Texas Boil House in Houston.
- Restaurants: The retailer operates Main Streat Food Hall & Bar in Austin, with five casual dine-in or to-go options that include Iron Grill, Roots Chicken Shak, South Flo Pizza, True Texas BBQ and Yumai Japanese Grill, along with Bar at Mueller, a full-service bar.
- Wellness Primary Care Clinics: H-E-B continues to add these clinics, primarily in the Houston area but also in Austin and San Antonio. Clinics share shopping center space with the grocer and offer pricing for individual visits as well as monthly subscription plans.
All Central Market stores have a café. The two Dallas locations also have a Coffee Bar and the San Antonio store boasts a pharmacy.
Customer Segments
Customer Segments
According to company research, 90% of households within its core marketing area visit an H-E-B store at least once per month. Supermarkets draw from a one- to five-mile radius, while Central Market stores draw shoppers from as far as 50 miles away.
H-E-B targets a mix of value shoppers, families, upscale households and ethnic groups, the last group particularly encompassing Hispanics. That range is even addressed in the retailer's format strategy:
- H-E-B supermarkets and H-E-B Plus superstores are geared toward shoppers seeking everyday low prices and lifestyle solutions.
- H-E-B Plus stores additionally serve as a one-stop shop for the entire family, offering a host of food destinations for women, an outdoor and grilling department for men, and mobile entertainment centers and toy departments for younger shoppers.
- Central Market is located in more prosperous neighborhoods to attract "foodie" consumers with more disposable income who are interested in gourmet options. They are stocked with premium brands, gourmet selections and service-oriented employees, and correspondingly carry higher prices than those found at sister chains.
- Mi Tienda’s market-style layout, Spanish signage and merchandise choices are designed to appeal to first-and second-generation Hispanic consumers.
- Joe V’s Smart Shop serves lower-income consumers and usually is located in an urban “food desert.” The no-frills store attracts extreme value shoppers.
The retailer analyzes shopper demographics and purchase data at the store level, using the information to tailor format, merchandising, marketing and services to best serve the neighborhood. Every U.S. location’s “target demographic” is a Texan, but also as a specific segment.
SKU selection and media advertising across the chain are intended to attract Hispanic shoppers, who typically visit stores more frequently and spend more per trip. The chain, however, recognizes the diversity within the Hispanic community, with individual stores honing merchandise mix and promotional activity toward specific cultural demographics including Mexican, Cuban, Honduran and Salvadorian.
Internet Marketing
Internet Marketing Strategy
H-E-B's website presents a wide variety of information for consumers, ranging from meal ideas to health tips. Little information, however, is offered about national brand products, which are only showcased when part of a large marketing campaign or under a "Digital Coupons" showcase.
The most prominent part of the website is a carousel ad on the home page, which presents information about current programs. This is one place in which national brands are sometimes featured as part of a program (such as Hershey Co.’s Hershey’s Kisses in an ad for the retailer's Easter effort).
H-E-B's has converted both its pharmacy and grocery apps and websites into one integrated digital platform, where customers can shop the site and manage prescriptions for themselves, family and pets, as part of its strategy to move deeper into the health and wellness space.
Other pages that spotlight national brands:
- Beauty & Personal Care: Descriptions of the types of products available in stores mention and spotlight imagery from specific brands such as O.P.I, Burberry, Versace, Ralph Lauren, Bed Head, Chi and Paul Mitchell.
- Beauty Pick of the Month: Extensive information about featured SKUs are presented along with a printable coupon. (See “Promotional Strategy.”)
- Must-Try Beer: The retailer’s beer buyer periodically showcases six beers with suitable food pairings. Brand graphics accompany the descriptions.
- Wine: A carousel ad on this page often spotlights brands. In 2017, H-E-B began a "Wine of the Month" marketing campaign that spotlights one national brand per month.
- Seasonal microsites: Themed crafts or game suggestions often will call for national brand products (such as General Mills’ Bugles as a beak for an Easter egg platypus).
Additional sections of the website include:
- Weekly Ads and Coupons: A home-page tab links to a digital version of the weekly circular and "Coupon Center" operated by Coupons.com.
- Online Deals: a home-page tab links to a page listing the latest e-commerce deals on both national and private label products.
- Totally Texas: Spotlights products made in or inspired by Texas.
- Recipes: Consumers can sort by category or theme to find meal ideas, instructions and ingredient lists that typically are dominated by private label products. Consumers can also add select products used in the recipes to their online shopping carts with a click of a button.
- Pharmacy & Health: Shoppers can order prescription refills and schedule in-store pick-ups. Health information such as fitness plans and weekly meal ideas is also offered.
- Our Brands: Brief descriptions of each private label, with new products and new food items spotlighted on separate pages.
Email: H-E-B distributes an e-newsletter that typically uses the current seasonal focus to spotlight the "Beauty Pick of the Month" and recipes. Other specific national brands are sometimes featured. Additional opt-in emails dangle printable coupons for national brands (via Coupons.com) that likewise are presented under a unifying theme.
A common component of H-E-B’s seasonal promotions are microsites on heb.com that, in addition to recipes calling for private-label products, provide ideas for children’s activities, timesaving tips and gift ideas.
Central Market’s website provides a wealth of information about the brands they merchandise. A home page carousel ad links to a digital version of “Foodie Finds,” (see “Circulars & Publications”) that includes images and brief descriptions of specific brands and links for more information on the chain's blog. (Other topics discussed on the blog are new products, in-season produce and general gourmet food news.)
The chain distributes one weekly e-newsletter, "eFoodie," which spotlights sales and specials, recipes and event information.
Both H-E-B and Central Market run display advertising on the websites of local news media.
Joe V’s Smart Shop operates a very basic website, with information about stores locations, a digital version of the weekly circular, and employment and lease opportunities.
Retail Media
Retail Media
Trends Report
For the past five years, brand marketers have been asked to rate various retail media platforms for Path to Purchase Institute’s annual Trends Report. In the magazine's 2024 survey, H-E-B’s retail media has some work to do as far as data sharing and measurement capabilities: A majority of survey participants, who have worked with the network, gave the platform a "poor/fair" score in these areas. The platform performed better in ROI, with 60% giving it a "good" grade or higher. (See chart below.)
![heb retail media survey 2024](https://assets1.p2pi.com/s3fs-public/styles/hero/public/2024-01/heb.png)
Mobile Marketing
Mobile Marketing Strategy
H-E-B's digital teams combined the H-E-B Pharmacy and My H-E-B apps and website so customers could refill prescription and shop for curbside or home delivery in one go.
The mobile app lets registered users check to see if a product is carried in a particular store, pinpoint the item's location down to a store aisle, and arrange shopping lists according to the layout of their preferred store. Users can build their shopping lists by scanning receipts, scanning product barcodes, and capturing items from digital circulars or from recipes.
Additionally, users can clip and redeem digital coupons with their mobile phone number and a four-digit pin, making the app function as a quasi loyalty card for a retailer that does not have a traditional loyalty program. Users can also refill and transfer prescriptions. The app launch coincided with updates to the chain's website, syncing the two to allow consumers to move between a desktop and handheld device.
Central Market has a mobile-optimized website. Joe V’s Smart Shop has neither app nor mobile website. But it does communicate with shoppers via “Joe Low Price Alert” text messages delivered up to six times per month, to announce special sales.
The grocer also piloted H-E-B Go, a self-checkout mobile app at three Texas stores, which allows shoppers to scan and pay for items using their mobile device. The app is available for Android and iOS users.
Social Media
Social Media Strategy
H-E-B primarily uses social media to promote large marketing programs. National brands sometimes are showcased in this context, but otherwise do not have much of a presence within the retailer’s activity.
Facebook: 1.6 million followers (as of December 2021)
Posts updates multiple times a month often to highlight cause campaigns, retailer programs, seasonal promotions, sports sponsorships, and store updates. A “Shop” tab enables users to browse private-label and national brand products directly through Facebook.
In 2021, H-E-B launched a weekly, shoppable Facebook Live cooking series hosted by celebrity chefs and featuring other celebrities. Viewers can watch the cooking classes and ask questions while shopping H-E-B products that are being featured, such as mixing bowls, sheet pans or herbs. During the Facebook Live event, customers can click on the items and purchase, and have the opportunity to win H-E-B gift cards.
Instagram: 273k followers (as of December 2021)
Posts mirror Facebook activity, while also using the platform to share recipe tips and demos and leverage food bloggers/influencers. Instagram stories highlight seasonal recipes, national brand promotions, and internet trends. A “View Shop” button also allows users to browse select product.
Twitter: 279.8k followers (as of December 2021)
Tweets mirror Facebook activity.
Pinterest: 34.1k followers (as of December 2021)
Boards tie in to seasons and holidays and contain recipes, party tips and influencer collaborations. Some boards showcase national brands under specific product categories.
YouTube: 60.5k subscribers (as of December 2021)
Videos are frequently posted and span a slew of cooking demos including long-format classes and short recipe demos, TV spots, workout videos. Videos also highlights retailer and cause campaigns.
Central Market
Facebook: 219k followers (as of December 2021)
In keeping with its merchandising focus on fresh foods and specialty items, Central Market provides few opportunities for national brand promotion. Updates are posted several times per week and contain photos spotlighting produce, in-store events and farmer suppliers. (the last of which reinforces the chain’s emphasis on locally sourced fresh goods). Local products sometimes earn mention. Additional updates share food-related articles from various media and its own blog.
Twitter: 42.1k followers (as of December 2021)
A majority of the chain’s Facebook updates are also synced to appear as Twitter updates. The majority of other updates are responses to consumers who use "Central Market” in tweets. The majority of other updates are responses to consumers complaints, comments, and praise.
Instagram: 78.6k followers (as of December 2021)
The chain’s Instagram account contains images of produce, floral arrangements and in-store events — most of which also appear in Facebook and Twitter updates. Instagram stories highlight individual categories of products, some national brands, and virtual events. Also contains a "View Shop" button.
Joe V’s Smart Shop
Facebook: 153k followers (as of December 2021)
Instagram: 2,367 followers (as of December 2021)
The discount chain shares occasional updates spotlighting temporary price cuts on national-brand products. Frequency of these varies from several per day to once every four months.
E-Commerce
E-Commerce Strategy
H-E-B dove into the e-commerce scene in 2015 when it began selling nonperishable items on its website for home delivery.
More than 50,000 shelf stable foods, OTC and general merchandise products are available for purchase on heb.com to ship to select zip codes. Online items include both private labels and national brands across categories.
In 2018, the San Antonio-based retailer continued to expand its omnichannel offerings across Texas, including a number of announcements, investments in technology and partnerships forged to grow digital offerings. These include H-E-B’s acquisition of Favor Delivery, an on-demand delivery startup headquartered in Austin, Texas. That same year, H-E-B launched same-day delivery for beer and wine orders via Favor in 30 cities throughout Texas. Orders can be placed on the Favor mobile application or online at favordelivery.com and require a minimum $2 “runner tip” and delivery fee.
Heb.com also lets shoppers order cakes and party platters online for in-store pickup. Floral arrangements, balloons, gift baskets and gift cards are also available for purchase online and can be delivered for an additional fee.
In 2024, H-E-B opened its eighth eCommerce fulfillment center, a 55,000-square-foot facility in Cibolo, Texas, increasing the number of curbside and home delivery locations to more than 270. Its first was opened in 2018; the retailer has plans to build more centers across Texas as it grows into the Dallas-Forth Worth Metroplex.
H-E-B Curbside
Launched in 2015, H-E-B Curbside is now available at more than 270 locations across Texas with continued plans for expansion. A new Houston-area supermarket boasts one of the chain’s largest curbside pickup sites with 26 parking spaces.
To receive free curbside pickup, shoppers must have a basket that is at least $35, and orders less than $35 include a $2.95 small basket surcharge. Orders can be filled in as soon as four hours and scheduled up to seven days in advance.
Instacart
H-E-B offers grocery delivery service Instacart in its San Antonio, Austin and Houston markets.
Shipt
The retailer began offering the delivery service Shipt in its San Antonio and Houston markets in 2016.
Circulars
Circulars & Publications
H-E-B distributes six- to eight-page weekly circulars with Wednesday-Tuesday sales dates.
The tabs typically group products by category with fresh and prepared foods as well as personal care always receiving space. Regularly featured promotions include Combo Loco and Meal Deal. During seasonal campaigns, full pages will be devoted to atypical categories such as toys or Halloween costumes.
The chain does provide space for manufacturer-specific promotions, which typically are exclusive. Depending on the size of the overall promotion, these features can be as large as two full pages.
H-E-B distributes a monthly in-store magazine entitled My H-E-B Texas Life containing lifestyle articles and value offers. The magazine, often seasonally themed, also carries meal solutions, recipes, health tips and product coupons.
H-E-B Plus stores distribute an additional 12-page weekly tab for general merchandise tab with Sunday-Saturday sale dates. Featured categories are home goods, toys, apparel, seasonal goods, lawn and garden and electronics.
Central Market distributes a four-page circular dubbed the “Weekly Savor” with Wednesday-Tuesday sales dates. The tab focuses on fresh and specialty foods on deal, such as "Foodie Freebie” BOGOs.
The chain also distributes a less frequent (three times in 2013) “Foodie Finds” in-store circular. The eight-page tab showcases new SKUs via magazine-style layouts and high quality photography.
Joe V’s Smart Shop distributes a two-page tab, with sales dates running Wednesday-Tuesday. The circular focuses on produce, meat and mostly private-label beverages and home goods. National brands do get some space.
Loyalty Programs
Loyalty Programs
In contrast to most major supermarket retailers, H-E-B does not operate a storewide loyalty card across the entire chain.
- Rx Rewards Platinum Card: H-E-B does operate a pharmacy program that, for an initial $5 enrollment fee, delivers benefits such as:
- discounts on brand name and generic medications.
- 30-day and 90-day supplies of generic medications for, respectively, $5 and $9.99. *discounts on immunizations.
- free prenatal vitamins with a prescription.
Regionally, stores in the Waco market operate a Points Club Rewards card that awards five points for every dollar spent, 100 points for every Business Center transaction, and 25 bonus points with every pharmacy transaction. Called "H-E-B Dollars," the points become valid quarterly; One H-E-B Dollar is equal to 1,000 points and the equivalent of an actual dollar.
H-E-B Debit and Credit Cards
H-E-B has launched branded debit and credit cards.
The H-E-B Debit Card is free. Customers who use it to shop H-E-B products earn 5% cash back to their debit accounts. It can be used wherever Mastercard is accepted, and there is no fee when money is withdrawn from H-E-B-branded ATMs.
The retailer also unveiled a H-E-B Visa Signature Credit Card and Central Market Visa Signature Credit Card. Cardholder benefits include no annual fee, 5% cash back on H-E-B brands and on all on-demand Favor Delivery orders, and 1.5% cash back on other purchases. The first qualifying applicants could choose a limited-edition card.
Private Label
Private Label
H-E-B has an incredibly strong private label program spanning thousands of SKUs often incorporating its Texas roots with local ingredients. The portfolio covers the entire store across three quality tiers: upscale, national-brand equivalent and value.
Some of H-E-B’s main private brands include:
- H-E-B: The core store brand aims to deliver "uncompromising quality" on a range of products including those specifically created for Texas tastes like H‑E‑B fully cooked brisket and H‑E‑B seasoned fajitas. The umbrella brand contains numerous category-specific sub-brands such as popular Creamy Creations sherbet/yogurt/ice cream (including limited-edition, seasonal flavors), Texas Tough packaged household items and Cafe Ole coffee.
- H-E-B Select Ingredients: A private label unveiled in 2016 in response to consumers' desire for additive-free food items. The line spans over 1,000 SKUs from juice to hummus to cereal, and excludes over 200 artificial ingredients and additives.
- H-E-B Organics: Launched in 2014, a brand of USDA-certified organic products spanning farm fresh produce to organically raised meat, breakfast foods to snacks. Products under this brand are identifiable in stores by green “organic” shelf tags.
- H-E-B Meal Simple: Pre-made and ready-to-eat meals, appetizers and desserts.
- Higher Harvest by H-E-B: Foods made for dietary lifestyles, including plant-based, carb-conscious or gluten-free.
- Central Market: A premium natural and organic brand comprising hundreds of edible items under the Organics and All Natural labels. Categories include snacks, frozen food, dairy and condiments.
- Hill Country Fare and Hill Country Essentials: Two lines spanning personal care and packaged and frozen food products, both comparable to national brands though priced about 40% lower. Hill Country Fare products include food, baking, pet and cleaning supplies, among others; while Hill Country Essentials spans shampoos, conditioners, baby and personal care products.
- H-E-Buddy: Comparable to national brands, the line comprises healthy snack foods, school supplies and personal care products developed to appeal to kids as well as parents by leveraging the name of the chain's mascot, the animated anthropomorphic shopping bag.
- Cocinaware: A Mexican-inspired line of cookware, tableware and kitchen gadgets.
- Field & Future: An environmentally minded brand of household and personal care products designed to “be kind to Texans and the environment” launched in 2021. From sponges and toothpastes to baby wipes and dish detergent, the line offers products with a range of attributes, such as hypoallergenic formulas, biodegradable materials and ingredients and recyclable packaging. Currently, dozens of Field & Future products are on the shelf.
As a regional grocer, H-E-B additionally uses Texas suppliers to make its store brand products whenever possible, particularly through its annual “H-E-B Quest for Texas Best” competition, which seeks out new and innovative emerging food and beverage products from Texas to launch at H-E-B stores. Since the program's inception in 2014, Quest for Texas Best has brought more than 1,000 new products to H-E-B's grocery, bakery, deli and market shelves, according to the company, which also says it’s the largest retailer of the Go Texan program, as 908 of its own brand items include the Go Texan watermark in stores to iterate its commitment to offering local products.
H-E-B is extremely aggressive about marketing its private labels, which often are showcased much more extensively in seasonal programs than national brands. Media support includes TV spots, prominent features in circulars, coupons and endcap placement in stores (especially for "Primo Picks").
Other store brands include:
- Junk Gypsy/Mia’s Mirror: Mia’s Mirror (H-E-B’s boutique located in select stores) exclusively offers Junk Gypsy, a line of unique gifts, apparel and accessories such as decor, shoes, handbags, scarves and other items.
- H‑E‑B Kitchen & Table: A high-quality-positioned line of cookware, bakeware, stemware and kitchen accessories.
- ChefStyle: A line spanning beverages, cookware, kitchenware and household items.
- EconoMax: A value brand consisting of packaged and frozen food, pet and other items.
- GTC: A brand comprising "everyday essentials" like lightbulbs, and home and outdoor SKUs like motor oil.
H-E-B is also the exclusive retail outlet for Luby's and select Whataburger products, two popular Texas-based quick service restaurants.
Cause /Community Programs
Cause/Community Programs
H-E-B focuses its philanthropic and community programs on education, health, hunger relief and the environment. Among specific initiatives:
- H-E-B Food Bank Assistance Program: The program supports Feeding America affiliates in the state. Annual activations include the Feast of Sharing during the holidays and the H‑E‑B Help End Hunger campaign. The chain also participates in the national “Souper Bowl of Caring” campaign each February.
- Read 3: Annual BTS-themed in-store book drive, typically taking place in August, offering many coupon deals including a free children’s book. Shoppers can donate the books back to H-E-B to give them to organizations that support literacy. H-E-B has donated nearly 4 million books to children in need since 2011.
- Excellence in Education: A program that awards grants to schools to recognize the dedication and commitment of teachers, principals or school boards nominated by the public. H-E-B awarded a total of $430,000 in grants in 2020.
- Back to School Donation Program: An annual summer program soliciting $1, $3, or $5 donations at checkout, with funds going to local nonprofit organizations that provide school supplies to students in need across Texas.
Additionally, H-E-B contributes to multiple environmental organizations: Keep Texas Beautiful, Earth Share of Texas, The Nature Conservancy, Hill Country Conservancy, Cibolo Nature Center, Texas Audubon Centers, The National Wildlife Federation and Ocean Trust-Texas.
It also continues to invest in solar panels, EV chargers, and energy-efficient refrigeration.
In 2023, H-E-B began accepting bags and other eligible plastic items from customers both in-store and using curbside pickup. It also switched up its collection bins to make them more prominent.
H-E-B also continues to build up its Field & Future line of household, personal care and baby products, which are made with recycled or recyclable materials, are biodegradable, or have plant-based ingredients.
In the community, the retailer has also held plastic recycling challenges at hundreds of Texas schools.
Advertising Strategy
Advertising Strategy
- Tagline: No Store Does More
- Primary media: ROP newspaper ads, TV, various Hispanic vehicles
- Key markets: Austin, Houston, San Antonio
As it does everywhere else, H-E-B emphasizes the pride and shared attributes of Texans through advertising, and working its ties to the community into every possible aspect. As residents of the Lone Star State have a particularly strong sense of identity, it has proved to be an effective tactic.
ROP newspaper ads, TV spots, FSIs, radio spots and digital display ads stress the chain's value proposition, fresh food selection, private labels, Hispanic expertise (when and where relevant) and, above all, its Texas heritage. TV spots also often promise thousands of prices lower than chief competitor Kroger.
TV spots dedicated to private labels focus on freshness and local sourcing of the products. Often, the ads tell the stories of the farmers and fishermen supplying the products. Ads activating relationships with local sports teams bolster the Texas flavor as well.
The chain runs Spanish-language TV, radio and print ads in heavily Hispanic communities. Ads include dubbed versions of standard creative as well as content developed specifically for Hispanic shoppers that focuses on ethnic foods, cultural holidays and music.
H-E-B kicked off a new tradition in 2007 when it broke a 60-second regional spot during the premier TV event of the year: broadcast of the National Football League's Super Bowl. Each year since then, the retailer has bought regional time during the event. Often, celebrities with Texas ties star in the spots, which run on broad schedules in 15- and 30-second variations following their Super Bowl launches.
In late 2023, H-E-B debuted several 15- and 30-second commercials on television and social media that feature NBA San Antonio Spurs players Victor Wembanyama, Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan and Devin Vassell. The campaigns focused on H-E-B products and ran in the San Antonio and Austin areas as well as Gulf Coast and Border regions.
The campaign also included:
- Billboards around town,
- In-store actual-size poster cutouts of Wembanyama standing next to stacked tubs of H-E-B's Creamy Creations ice cream;
- An in-arena Creamy Creations wig fan-cam experience during Spurs home games;
- A Creamy Creations hair filter on social media; and
- A collaboration with San Antonio-area designer Kike Sanchez to create a gym bag exclusively for Sochan using inspiration from the Spurs and the H-E-B private label ice cream.
In 2024, the retailer launched commercials featuring Houston Astros players in a telenovela-inspired spot.
The retailer engages in cooperative advertising very, very rarely – only running a few co-ops per year as TV spots and ROP newspaper ads. Themes for co-op ads include overlays to national campaigns, support for seasonal programs, or simple price promotions.
While Central Market doesn’t often run TV spots, it regularly supplements the weekly tab with ROP ads to promote sales on fresh, prepared and private-label foods along with wines and other specialty items.
Solution Providers
Solution Providers
- Media advertising, in-store signage: The Richards Group, Dallas
- Marketing technology and in-store customer experience insights: Stratacache, Dayton, Ohio
- Sponsorship evaluation, sports marketing: Haymaker, Dallas (a subsidiary of The Richards Group)
- P-O-P materials, store design: Tool Box Studios, Dallas
- P-O-P materials, Central Market: Moon International, Corona, California
- Direct mail coupons: SKULocal, St. Petersburg, FL
- Retail events: Interactions Marketing, San Diego (a Daymon Worldwide company)
- Private label brand design: Creative Link, San Antonio, Texas
- Vendor Portal: IRI, Chicago
- Workforce Management: Reflexis Inc., Dedham, Massachusetts
- In-store tablets: The Looma Project, Durham, North Carolina
Sponsorships
Sponsorships
The retailer focuses heavily on the sponsorships of local sports teams, further aligning its identity with the state while tapping into fan loyalty.
- National Basketball Association: San Antonio Spurs. Spurs players are tapped for TV spots and in-store events; the retailer sells a Spurs-flavored H-E-B ice cream. In 2017, H-E-B released a limited-edition "Slam Duncan-O's" cereal commemorating retired Spurs player Tim Duncan.
- National Football League: Houston Texans. The retailer is presenting sponsor of "Tailgater of the Game" contests before home games.
- Major League Baseball: Houston Astros.
- Women’s National Basketball Association: San Antonio Stars.
- American Hockey League: San Antonio Rampage.
- National Collegiate Athletic Association: Baylor University, Texas A&M University, University of Texas at Austin and University of Texas at San Antonio. H-E-B also conducts "Tailgater of the Game" contests before the home games of all four schools.
- United Soccer League: Rio Grande Valey Toros FC. H-E-B partnered with the team to name its new stadium in Edinburg, TX, to H-E-B Park.
Marketing Expenditures
Marketing Expenditures
As a private company, H-E-B does not divulge its marketing expenditures.
![a close up of a sign](https://assets1.p2pi.com/styles/hero/s3/2022-07/heb_logo.png)
H-E-B Promotional Calendar
A roundup of seasonal promotions.
January
- Resolutions Solutions: The retailer uses a signage package with the tagline to spotlight and offer discounts on health-focused store brand products, with heavy in-store, digital and feature support. The annual “Slim Down Showdown,” sponsored by Dole Foods, begins.
- Super Bowl: Prepared platters, private-label snacks and national brand beers earn spotlights in circular features. P-O-P materials promoted perimeter goods in stores; vendor-supplied spectaculars appear in larger stores.
- Souper Bowl of Caring: The retailer supports the national cause-campaign by offering pre-packed donation bags available for purchase.
- Ciao Italia: A comprehensive campaign spotlights Italian imports and private label SKUs through a partnership with the Italian Trade Agency. Includes robust P-O-P and digital support, as well as a corresponding sweepstakes awarding a trip to Rome. In the past, the event has run in September and October.
February
- Valentine’s Day: Confectionary and floral goods earn circular features. In-store displays for the holiday have increased in recent years, with the retailer using taglines such as "Love is a big deal" to spotlight national brands such as Hershey and its store brand.
- Lent: An emphasis on seafood in circulars and digital marketing by way of recipes.
- Super Bowl: The retailer runs a local TV spot during the Super Bowl broadcast each year.
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Texas Independence Day: Kicks off the March 2 holiday early at the end of February with its annual, two-week "TexFest" program showcasing Texas-made products with in-store "Go Local" tags and TexFest signage, sampling stations and special deals. Highlights many of its H-E-B store brand SKUs and winners of its annual Primo Picks "Quest for Texas Best" competition, which launched in 2014 and runs in tandem with TexFest.
March
- Easter: Children’s toys and confectionary earn promotion.
- Grilling/Thrill of the Grill: Runs an annual, two-week-long "Thrill of the Grill" campaign – ahead of its usual June and July promotions – promoting grilling essentials with a slew of deals and a sampling event. Various P-O-P materials and circular features support. Typically runs into April.
- Texas Independence Day/TexFest
April
- Thrill of the Grill
- Sandwiches: Two weeks of circular features, media advertising, in-store P-O-P, specialty samplings and Combo Locos spotlight sandwiches and complementary sides. Different themes (World of Sandwiches, Grand Slam Sandwiches, etc.) are employed each year through in-store signage and circular features.
- Earth Day: A recycling incentive awards products (such as a reusable shopping bag or water) when H-E-B plastic bags are brought in.
May
- Mother’s Day: Circular features focus on floral, confectionary and kitchenware.
- Summer: Circular features focus on sun skincare and dedicated floorstands in stores merchandise national brands. Digital activity highlights summertime essentials.
- Celiac Awareness Month: In-store displays spotlight gluten-free SKUs from national brands and private labels. Social media updates share gluten-free recipes.
- Graduation: Promotes high school and college graduation party needs like customized cakes and food trays.
June
- Father’s Day: Circular features and digital activity focus on gift baskets, grilling essentials and coolers and products from H-E-B's exclusive brand Kodi.
- Grilling: Runs an annual, two-week "Thrill of the Grill" program, promoting all the means necessary for grilling season with a slew of deals and a sampling event. Circular features and digital activity focus on seasonal needs and perimeter goods, with an emphasis on burgers in recent years.
- Graduation
July
- Back to School: A 360 degree campaign featuring a child star promotes gift cards, school supplies and snack ideas through TV spots; circular features; radio, cinema and ROP newspaper ads. A sweepstakes often accompanies. ConAgra joins with the retailer for the annual “Meal Maker Challenge” contest.
- Back to College: TV spots, radio ads, digital activity and circular features promote gift cards, school supplies, small appliances and dorm furnishings and decor. Recent efforts have included P-O-P support, blogger-staged sweepstakes and an expanded product assortment.
August
- Back to School
- Back to College
- Labor Day: Circular features and radio ads spotlight seasonal goods.
September
- Football: An emphasis is placed on deli trays and private label goods. A “Tailgater of the Game” contest invites fans to showcase H-E-B's private-label products in a creative way at college and professional football games.
October
- Halloween: Standard focus on confectionary with added emphasis on costumes and decorations. A dedicated microsite on heb.com encourages catering orders while offering party planning tips and recipes.
- Breast Cancer Awareness
- Football
November
- Thanksgiving: Promotes perimeter goods and prepared platters through circular features, H-E-B Plus stores offer special pricing and hours on Black Friday.
December
- Christmas: TV spots, radio ads and circular features focus on cookware, perimeter goods and prepared platters. Children’s toys and electronics earn circular features and vendor supplied P-O-P materials merchandise national brands in stores.