HEB - A Second Chance That Won Me Over

I made a mistake, and this is the fix.

In August of 2011, I moved to Austin and had my first HEB experience.  It was overwhelming, chaotic, and I wasn't fully prepared for the whole HEB experience.  I wrote several negative comments in my August 27th post on Morning Glory Muffins.  Today, I'm setting the record straight on HEB to all my friends and family outside the state of Texas.  I do NOT want you to live your life with the wrong impression of this Texas tradition.

HEB is a Texas grocery store based out of San Antonio, a city about 1.5 hours south of Austin.  There are stores all throughout Texas and Mexico.  HEB

was founded in 1905,

now has over 300 stores and

over 75,000 employees.

It is

the 25th largest retailer in the United States and

donates 5 percent of pre-tax profits to charity.

Several things have completely turned my view of HEB around.

1. One of those 'adventuresome recipe' days called for fresh ginger root.  On my trip to the produce section at HEB, I couldn't find ginger among the other roots.  The staffer told me the manager had turned away today's shipment of ginger root... he didn't think their quality was high enough to put out on the floor.
2. Another time I needed pastry flour for a different recipe of morning glory muffins I was trying.  I knew I'd seen pastry flour before on the shelves at HEB, but for the life of me could not find it on the day I needed it.  I approached a shelver in a red shirt, and was amazed at how quickly she turned my problem into hers.  She knew right where the flour should be, but after not finding it there after several minutes of looking, went off to find the expert for the natural foods section (where the pastry flour should be).  They both couldn't find any in stock, and showed me how to use the 'bulk' section.  A whole aisle at HEB, the bulk section is where you can find commodity goods from nuts, dried fruit, coffee, flour, etc.  You scoop out however much you need into a baggie, weigh it, and record the item number - just like in the produce section.  Just like that, my problem was solved for less than $2 - way cheaper than the larger box would have been.  
3. Today's business lecture focused on corporate social responsibility.  Being in Texas, HEB was a prime example my professor discussed.  She told us how, when she was growing up, there were three grocery stores in her town.  Now, there is just HEB.  HEB won over loyal customers due to their commitment and involvement with the communities around them.   They supported local's efforts by investing time and money.

So HEB, I'm sorry I gave you a bad review back in August.  I'm glad something made me go back the second time.  I'll be a loyal customer in the future as long as I live in Texas.  I haven't been to Randalls, your main competitor, and I kinda don't even want to try it out.  I like you HEB, and I see good things in our future.