The winners were drawn out of the hundreds and hundreds of slips filled out at the local Piggly Wiggly stores in August by people participating in its regular "Moolahpalooza" promotion. Golden ticket recipients will be notified by managers, but they also can check online. Columbus and Phenix City is JTM's largest market, with 11 total stores. But it also has locations in LaGrange, Ga., Thomaston, Ga., Opelika, Ala., Lanett, Ala., and Eufaula, Ala.
"In every city that we operate, seven cities, each city's mayor is proclaiming it as Piggly Wiggly Day," said Milligan, noting the golden ticket promotion was created long before the recent passing of "Willy Wonka" movie star Gene Wilder.
It was in 1966 that Tommy Milligan, after working with several stores in town, decided to venture on his own, opening his first grocery in the Baker Village area of south Columbus. It grew from there, with the supermarket in the Ladonia area of Phenix City being his fourth store, but the first in a shopping center that he had built. Thus, the corporate headquarters was located there as well and remains today.
The son, who handles marketing, advertising, volume pricing and category management for the chain, agreed that his father is a good example of achieving the American dream. Dad expressed pride recently amid JTM's 50th anniversary this summer and the approaching 100-year milestone for Piggly Wiggly.
JTM Corp. has grown both in stores and employees, with it having nearly 1,000 on its payroll today, and with an eye toward adding supermarkets if the right opportunity arises, Milligan said. It's most recent addition was the 2015 opening of its state-of-the-art Woodruff Farm Road store that features environmentally friendly cooling and refrigeration.
That's along the lines of the innovation Piggly Wiggly — famed for its smiling pig logo — is credited with as it helped modernize grocery retailing a century ago. That includes self-service where customers pluck items off shelves and take them to a checkout counter to pay. It also priced each item separately, began using refrigerated cases for produce, had employees wear uniforms, and emphasized lower prices through high-volume sales.
Milligan said he understands JTM Corp. is the second-longest running family franchisee in the Piggly Wiggly chain, which is franchised by Keene, N.H.-based C&S Wholesale Grocers. There are more than 600 stores altogether in 17 states.
Asked if marking milestones such as 50 years in business — which many companies do not get to enjoy — is emotional for his family, Milligan downplayed that notion.
Milligan also offered a nod to those who have helped the company along over five decades.