VALENCIA – Mercadona has become one of the most important supermarket chains in Spain. The contribution of a total of 1,654 stores to the national economy represents 2.22% of GDP and 3.89% of employment.
This data comes from the Mercadona 2020 Economic Impact report prepared by the Valencian Institute of Economic Research (IVIE).
Added to this is the good image of the company. It is the second with the best reputation in Spain. Only Inditex (parent company of fashion retailer Zara) scores higher according to the latest Merco reputation index, which was published in September.
But due to the success of the Valencian chain, many still wonder about the origin of the supermarket’s name. The president of the company, Juan Roig answered that question in 2017. He revealed the mystery surrounding the name of his company during a congress .
Origin of Mercadona name
The name dates back to 1981. Then Francisco Roig, one of Juan Roig’s brothers, was inspired by the name of an Italian pasta brand, Mercadonna, where he took out an ‘n’ to give the fledgling supermarket chain a new name.
The company was founded in 1977, when Francisco Roig Ballester and Trinidad Alfonso Mocholí transformed the family business Cárnicas Roig, a butcher’s shop, into a grocery store. Later, in 1981, Mercadona was born, which started with eight stores in the city of Valencia.
Fifteen years later, in 1996, the well-known white brands that quickly appeared on the shelves of all its branches: Hacendado, Bosque Verde, Deliplus and Compy.
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Name hoaxes
The hoaxes surrounding the origin of the Mercadona name have not stopped since, despite statements made by the president years ago. Proof of this, a question asked by a customer months ago to the official Twitter account of the Valencian supermarket.
“Hello Mercadona, could you explain the origin of the name? I read that it is based on ‘mercado’ (market ) and wife (doña), that it comes from an Italian pasta brand and that ‘mercadona’ is an indication of market, but I don’t know which one is real,” the Twitterer wrote.
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The chain’s community manager solved the mystery for him. “We inform you that the name Mercadona comes from Francisco Roig, our president’s brother. He saw the name of an Italian pasta in Italy and decided to take an ‘n’ out of it,” he tweeted.
