Meijer, Inc. is a privately held, family-owned American supercenter and grocery retail chain headquartered near Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1934 by Hendrik Meijer, it is credited with pioneering the U.S. hypermarket format ('Thrifty Acres') in 1962. It operates over 500 stores across six Midwestern states and employs roughly 70,000 people, ranking among the largest private companies and retailers in the United States.