Gordon Food Service (GFS) has its roots in the turn of the 20th century when Isaac Van Westenbrugge, a 23-year-old Dutch immigrant, started a business delivering dairy products to grocers in Michigan.
In 1916 Ben Gordon began to work at the company. He went on to marry Isaac’s daughter Ruth in 1921. He became president of GFS in 1946.
By the 1960’s the company was redefining its business as a food service distributor with product lines consisting mostly of frozen foods, grocery, and disposable items.
By 1974 GFS had 4,000 steady customers including restaurants, hotels, and schools in western Michigan and $36 million in sales.
By 1990 the company was offering 10,000 products to its 10,000 customers.
Today GFS has 20 distribution centers across the U.S. and Canada. The company distributes food items, ingredients, and beverages to restaurants, schools, healthcare facilities, and institutional food service operators in 15 states and across Canada. GFS also operates 155 wholesale stores under the GFS Marketplace banner.
GFS is #39 on the Forbes list of America’s Largest Private Companies, has 13,000 employees, and had $8.6 billion in revenue in 2012.
Gordon Food ServiceGordon Food Service (GFS) has its roots in the turn of the 20th century when Isaac Van Westenbrugge, a 23-year-old Dutch immigrant, started a business delivering dairy products to grocers in Michigan.
In 1916 Ben Gordon began to work at the company. He went on to marry Isaac’s daughter Ruth in 1921. He became president of GFS in 1946.
By the 1960’s the company was redefining its business as a food service distributor with product lines consisting mostly of frozen foods, grocery, and disposable items.
History
By 1974 GFS had 4,000 steady customers including restaurants, hotels, and schools in western Michigan and $36 million in sales.
By 1990 the company was offering 10,000 products to its 10,000 customers.
Today GFS has 20 distribution centers across the U.S. and Canada. The company distributes food items, ingredients, and beverages to restaurants, schools, healthcare facilities, and institutional food service operators in 15 states and across Canada. GFS also operates 155 wholesale stores under the GFS Marketplace banner.
GFS is #39 on the Forbes list of America’s Largest Private Companies, has 13,000 employees, and had $8.6 billion in revenue in 2012.
I’m wondering if Gordon’s monitor what there broker’s do in transportation because I can’t believe a load from LeSueur MN gr pays 950.00 more than a load to Brighton with triple t I think triple t is packing there pockets at us trucking companies expense they are only paying 1700.00 on a 2 stop load and I know that they are getting payed a he’ll of a lot more from Gordon’s again the brokers steals from us poor b*stards doing the work someone needs to keep these brokers in check it was better during the pandemic when all these brokers were off we were actually getting payed what we should of now fuel and parts inflation we are making less now than ever if it don’t change I can’t haul for Gordon’s and I used to like it we are always on time and they treated us that way receiving has told me so thank you and I hope we can straighten this out because either your getting ripped off or these trucks are the brokers are just laughing at us
Well said. And wow, it’s unbelievable but I truly believe you
Your Melbourne Fla store makes it a bad a habit of lying to you just to get you in the store.. After driving there several times to find out they don’t have what we need for our store we started calling there.. This past weekend we called the store to find out if they had some Monin products that we use in our coffee shop. We were told yes and that they were on sale ok that makes it even better. so we drove all the way there only to be told that the sale didn’t start until tomorrow. NOT the first time we’ve been lied to to get us to the store.. OK so now we drove 45 miles one way to get told you cant get the stuff until tomorrow on sale .. We spoke to the manager on duty his name was CARLOS and what a piece of crap he is… Instead of being like I made a mistake earlier by telling you it was on sale and giving it to us at the sale price after driving all the way there after we just got done putting in a 10 hour day at our business. NO this son of ****** just wanted to argue with us about how we should have checked the ad before we came there and that it didn’t matter what we were told earlier we should have checked our e mail before we came there… Then I asked him for a card so I could call corporate offices to complain and he gave me a card with 3 names on it.. I had to go back in the store just to get his name… He wouldn’t tell me an associate there told me his name. When he told us to leave because he wasn’t going to do anything for us … HE smirked at us and said SEE YOU TOMORROW… I told him he could wipe that smirk off his face and we will NEVER be back…and we wont… LIke I said earlier we would call to see if they had cups and lids they would be like yes we have them we would even tell them to go check before we come out and even when we got there they were the wrong cups and the lids never fit or theyd have lids and no cups… This place is a joke… I am a business owner myself and I don’t even know how this place stays in business because the managers here don’t know anything about the products , sales , how to deal with people or anything else.. This is the place they UPPER MANAGEMENT needs to do a complete employee turnover and get it running right by people that care about serving the customer or just shut this place down…..
I commend you you for writing about your experience and sharing it with the public. Go for you to make a decision to never conduct business with lousy inexperience, non caring people
I am employed at a corporation that purchases roughly $100,000 per month of product through Gordon Food Service. We have a dedicated delivery truck ensuring that we are the only customer on that route. When we receive product, however, we have observed that many items that could be placed together on their own pallets are often mixed together with product on two or three different pallets. This requires that the warehouse staff must break down pallets that could have been built out at the GFS originating warehouse.
My question then is this: can we arrange something that can be addressed by a direct communication between customer and vendor?
High prices, highway robbery. The Gordons Food Service in Flint, MI is a joke. The prices are way out there!!!! Don’t look at the frozen clearance items either—-been there for months, and not even a clearance price.
Daytona Beach, Florida is where the Gordon stored i use is. I shop there every week for Church Suppers. I’m finding the Assistant Manager VERY grumpy, and lacking customer service skills. Went to this manager Aug. 30 to order Turkey breast. The whole time he acted like we were inconveniencing him. We wanted the breast cut into 3 Gordon’s trays. He was frustrated. (REALLY?) Came back on Tuesday Sept 4th (as agreed upon) to pick up order. I ordered 2 Breast. they brought out 2 cases 4 breasts. UNCUT and totally frustrated. Where IS customer services AT in this store. NOT my 1st choice in shopping I’m done with YOU guys. done finished!
I was hired for a position at Gordon Food Services in Lima, Ohio in June 2018, at first I was so excited because during my phone interview with a man named Nick he was super nice and insured Gordon Foods was a Family ran business and that they Pride their selves on family and they take care of their employees ( as I was worried about this coming from a company I was a manager of for 10 years that was very family surrounded and wonderful and being a parent of special needs children it was very important to me), I then went to my in-person interview with a man named Josh who also ensured me of this and told me that it was his main goal to make sure that everyone felt like family in his location. I was then called back 2 days later and told that I got the job and sent an email of a list of things to complete and given an orientation date. I attended my Orientation date on June 19, 2018, it took them 2 days to give me my schedule. I showed up for my first day on Friday, June 22, 2018, at 8:45 am as I was told they expect all employees to arrive at work 10-15 minutes early no exception. When I arrived there were 2 managers there named Emily and Katie or Kalee not really sure as she never introduced herself to me. When I walked to the service desk and introduced myself as a new employee Emily seemed annoyed and asked what I was supposed to be doing and when I explained I was not given any instructions by Josh other than to show up for a 9 am to 2 pm shift and that I also did not have my employee number yet she let out a big sigh of annoyance and told the other manager to get me a name badge and apron and have one of the cashiers train me.
For one being a former manager of a Company, I believe that in company or industry it is a managers job to train new employees not an employee that whom themselves had no idea what they were doing or what was going on. The girl who they had training me did not know what she was doing or how to treat customers at all. The two managers that were on shift that day were rude and disrespectful, they “jokingly” cussed at other employees out loud in front of customers and even to some of the customers and being a mother I felt that is very inappropriate and unacceptable in any job and they also just walked around the store and were occasionally stocking shelves and doing things around the store leaving me wondering what in the world was going on or what I was supposed to do. The girl
” TRAINING” me handed me a packet of papers after fastly reading them out loud and pushing a bunch of buttons on the register screen and tells me here read this over and learn it. This was what my training consisted of and took her all of 28 minutes.
For the rest of my first day at Gordon Food Service, I was to stand at the register with this cashier and watch her ring customers up. I clearly stated on my application that I suffered from Anxiety and OCD, so being confined to this space with this girl was starting to bother me by 11 am. These employees at your lima location are very rude, inconsiderate, and disrespectful not only to new employees but to their customers as well. Talking rudely and badly under their breath about and to the customer, seeing a customer walk through the door and saying ” Oh God, you have to watch out for this one, they will come through the line and hold it up because they are so picky on how things are done and its annoying”, rolling their eyes when customers ask questions to them and they don’t want to answer the question or deal with it. Throwing customers food around from one cart to another, I Understand , GFS is bulk foods and they do not offer customers bags but they do offer boxes, but when a customer asks for help and a cashier puts someones hot dog or hamburger buns on the bottom of a box and then throws cans on top and tells a customer or another employee oh well get over it when something is said to them that is very rude .
And then to top it off after I kindly put in my resignation, and let them know that the job was not going to work out not mentioning any of the above issues as a reason I was leaving just that I was not the right job for me, I have yet to this day to be paid at all for any of my hours I have worked at this company and each time I have contacted the manager via email, going to the store and by phone call, and then asking for a way to get ahold of HR or corporate my self ( which I still have been denied this information and had to find it myself) I have been told that it was taken care of and that it would be direct deposited into my bank account on the next Thursday. ( they told me every Thursday was payday) and yet there is still not been on paycheck… I should not have to wait 2-4 weeks to be paid for working and then be ignored and get the runaround, I took 8+ hours in 1 day plus 2.5 hours another day away from my special needs children to work at your company to be treated with disrespect and watch customers be treated horribly and much more. I could have stayed home and wasted time for free if that was the case. Mcdonald’s employees get treated with more respect than this.
I think this whole store, employees, and managers all need to go to training classes in customer service, how to properly run a store, how to treat customers, how to train employees and furthermore how to handle a situation under high pressure. Because I believe this store does not have the skills for it but yet claim they hare the highest rating of all Gordon Food Service Stores with an 80% customer Services score. I am making this a public review because I have yet to have any of the issues I have brought up address even with the ” Open Door” policy they claim to have. This store and all store has cameras all over the place for security reasons and I believe that they should not only be used to watch the customers but to watch what the managers and employees are doing and saying as well. Maybee, you wouldn’t have so many upset customers and business all the time.
Not only has your company lost me as an employee but as a customer as well, my family as customers and my family’s business will no longer use Gordon Food Services to supply their business food inventory.
I went to the Fairfield marketplace an purchase a box of chicken tenders an took them home an put them in my freezer. An come to find out that I didn’t need them after all. So I tried to return them an they told I couldn’t return frozen items. Now mind you theirs no sign posted sayin that all. An the cashier never said anything bout that. An on all the boards an poster it doesn’t say that.. So I will be boycotted gas in Fairfield, oh for now on… An will tell any an everybody not to shop their. Am the bottom line I’m stuck with a product I can’t even use 25 dollars down the drain…..
I spend over 100.000 dollors a year at gordons food service. I just want to say they have the worst management and staff at the gordons store in lansing Michigan.my staff and myself have been treated by rude /unhelpful/uneducated people I have ever dealt with.
jim Gordon needs to take a closer look at his company and staff . I will never spend another dime at there stores. for all business buy from Sysco food service .better company better people.they think because there so big they cant fail.so did the banks in 2008 during the mortgage fall out.
I want to work in gordon fud in edmonton alberta but, they tell me that there is no work nor habra for me, please wish the job what I need.
as a customer walked into this store and approached the service desk, in a nasty, rude tone of voice, she was asked what she needed (Kirkland). apparently she was bothering this employee and he was making it very clear. in fact, Kirkland was bothered so much, he motioned for an associate in isle 2 to help the customer and retrieve the food order she was picking up. turns out, according to the employee from isle 2, the order was already picked up. as a result of the missing food order, the store manager (Shawn) was called to explain why there was no order/or what happed to the order. I have been told by management that the poor customer service is a result of being short handed/lack of employees, and it is to no surprise. when you tell a customer that the employee standing next to you “doesn’t know anything,” you may have well told the employee he was stupid. thumbs up to you Shawn for belittling an employee.
poor customer service, offensive music, and rotten food complaint was made to Robbie (manager). Robbie was surprised that the above attitudes are present in the store implying that is did not exist, and there is certainly no rotten food as GFS provides fresh produce not rotten produce. Hats off to you Robbie for poor customer service (nasty rude tone of voice, lack of knowledge of your employees) and certainly not the fresh rotten produce (see photo) you sell to customers. As for the hostility from Shawn concerning offensive music, sounds to me you found a way to override corporate music selection and the play your own selection. Hats off to Robbie for wanting to cater to the younger generation with the music selection and offend the older generation.
Would you purchase rotten food? if not, Why do you expect your customers to purchase rotten food?
I’m not going to serve my guests rotten food.
My first day on the job I trained as a cashier. We stayed in the same area for 6 hours was not able to walk store to see were all the products were. The most disturbing part was we were never asked if we wanted/needed a break. My trainer worked 6 hours without using restroom. She said the was “normal”. No I am pretty sure Indiana labor laws say you are entitled to a break on a 6 hour shift.. Also she never checked for counterfeit money ,never had drawer reduced of excess cash and never put the bills the same way. Again this was “normal”. This was at the Lafayette IN store.
I applied for a job at Gordon Food Service and the same day as my interview I was speaking with hr and filling out papers and signed the offer for the job. A hair drug test was conducted and the following week I was notifed that the job was no longer available to me because my test was positive for THC. I am a caregiver to family member that has their medical marijuana card and I have been around when she medicates. I have found out that u can test positive because of the smoke getting in your hair. I am able to pass a urine test, swab test and hair test now that I know I needed to wash my hair. I feel that I should get second chance and nobody from hr will help me or respond to calls or emails. Had I known taking care of a family member with a disability that uses medical marihuana would cost me a job, things would have been done differently.
To whom it may concern, to begin with I am a customer of one of many gf stores, I have been going to gordons for the last few yrs. Now, and I enjoy shopping there and the staff is very nice. ON THAT SHORT NOTE I want to share with you a situation that happened just a few days ago. I shop at Gordon foods for the fact I can buy by bulk, because of a family to feed, and usually I buy just about the same things , unless its on sale I buy. IT. The most favorite is the grilled rib meat chicken fajita strips that I purchased recently. I and my two kids had fixed chicken fajitas for dinner on July 10 ,2014 my oldest son fixed two of them he doesn’t put anything in his fajita just the chicken. He ate his first one and started on his second. And he bit into it and a bone had jabbed into his gum in his mo uth he was bleeding. I had him wash his mouth out. He spitted the bite and the bone back onto his plate. The next day I went into the local Gordon foods where I purchased the chicken and explained to them what had happened. I am just. Really glad thats all that happened, I pray everyday for the Lord to guide and protect my kids, and thats exactly what he did, I am also thankful, that it wasnt any worse or that a young kid was involved or a customer at a resturant. Thank you for your time and reading my email. Sincerely. Christine sexton
I AM RESPONDING TO THE EMAIL That was sent to me asking for the bar code off of the packaged purchased. 9390176340 on the chicken fajita strips thank you
I AM REALLY TROUBLED ON HOW GFS IS TAKING CARE OF SOME
OF ITS EMPLOYEES. THIS PERSON WORKS HARD WAS PROMISED A
TRANSIT JOB, BUT HIS BOSS DECIDED NOT TO GIVE IT TO HIM, WORKS
OUT IN 40 BELOW WITH TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS IN THE COUNTY DURING
WINTER STROMS. RARELY EVER CALLS IN, DOES HIS JOB, BUT IS TREATED
WITH NO KIND OF RESPECT. I THINK BOSSES SHOULD TRADE WITH THE DRIVERS
WHEN THE WEATHER IS BAD AND START TREATING THEIR DEDICATED EMPLOYEES WITH A LITTLE BIT MORE RESPECT.
My name is Derek Graham I worked as a driver in your Springfield DC I had to leave because of family reasons and now none of the management will take my calls or respond to my texts. Your company is a Christian based company and I would like to get another chance to work for your company if someone would contact me it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Derek Graham