AutoZone Leads the Way in New Hires

April, 2020 was the worst month in American history in terms of lost jobs. Nearly 21 million jobs were lost in one single month, due to the various state shut downs to help curb the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. While America’s economy is relatively stable now some four months later, many people are still reeling from that month, with millions still unemployed. Not only did people lose their jobs, but entire industries were lost. Tens of thousands of businesses shuttered completely and will not be reopening again. Some of the only businesses to survive the novel coronavirus to date have been large corporations, like AutoZone.

AutoZone is said to be leading the way in hiring new employees across all 50 American states. Already this month, the automotive giant has pledged to add over 20,000 new job in all sorts of positions, from managers and clerks and automotive experts. Representatives from AutoZone, Inc claimed on Friday, August 14, that they had plans to hire well over 20,000 employees to their many stores in order to meet the growing demands customers have with their business.

The automotive corporation has over 5,800 stores across the nation, in all 50 states, and is looking for sales associates, delivery drivers, and many other workers to fill jobs. The CEO of the company, Bill Rhodes, said in an interview that “We are fortunate to be in a position to create so many….jobs…especially in this current environment.” Other large retailers are laying people off and eating enormous losses, but AutoZone is proving to be a very strong business model in the face of a global crisis.

The automotive giant first opened its doors in 1979 as an aftermarket retailer for a variety of automobile parts. Over the years, the business started offering mechanic services and other sorts of automotive services, and it now stands as one of the largest automotive corporations in history. Doing almost $11 billion in sales annually, AutoZone never skipped a beat during this dangerous and scary virus. For them, it was business as usual, and many thousands of Americans will be able to pay their bills and finally experience some financial security amid this horrible pandemic.

As the self-described leading distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories in the United States, AutoZone is also a boon for Brazil and Mexico, where they have thousands of jobs available. They have 610 stores in Mexico, and 38 stores in Brazil. They also employ thousands of people to run their online business, as people can easily go to AutoZone’s main website to shop for goods.

The Reason Behind AutoZone’s Strength

Why do so many other businesses fail in general, but especially during the Covid-19 crisis, while AutoZone is doing better than ever? Most economic experts suggest it’s not necessarily their business model or anything they’re doing that’s special; rather, it’s because Americans still need their cars. Even during state shut downs in the nation, people still need to get back and forth to the grocery store, to the doctor, and the people who still have jobs need to get back and forth to work. Many people think of AutoZone as only an aftermarket retailer, for people who want to accessorize, but the truth is that AutoZone is where people are going to get tires, oil changes, air filters, spark plugs, and other essential parts they need to keep their cars running. With dozens of locations in every single state, AutoZone is far and away the most convenient stop for people who need parts for their cars.

In many respects, it’s the same reason Walmart continues to do so well, while that local mom ‘n’ pop grocers probably shut down soon after the virus broke out. There are just far too many convenient locations that these corporations have open to pass up. Plus, retailers like AutoZone charge a lot less money to consumers than your typical mom ‘n’ pop. So if you’re driving around looking for an air filter and find Local Joe’s Car Parts, he’s going to charge you a lot more than AutoZone for the same part, strictly because he has to charge you more to keep his doors open. Unfortunately, this leads his store to close down, which might be bought out and replaced by an AutoZone.

Despite what people may think about large corporations, places like AutoZone are responsible for hiring the most Americans in times of economic turmoil.