Application of the total quality management approach in a Spanish retailer: the case of Mercadona

This current article analyses the successful application of the total quality management (TQM) model by a firm in the Spanish commercial distribution sector. The TQM model implies a strategic, proactive and global approach that could prove appropriate in the face of a turbulent and changing environment, such as the one firms are currently experiencing. This article uses case study methodology to analyse the process by which Mercadona has implemented its TQM model, which involves different actions oriented to satisfying the needs of customers, employees, suppliers, society and capital. Applying this model allowed Mercadona to overcome a critical situation that threatened its very survival in the early 1990s, and since then the firm has bounced back to a position of leadership in its sector. Its excellent results and growth have caught the attention of both academics and industry rivals, in Spain and internationally.