U.S. Retail Industry Companies on the Annual 2009 Most Admired Companies List

Fortune Magazine Measures Key Attributes to Create Reputation Rankings

How do you measure admiration? Fortune Magazine attempts to do just that each year when it compiles and publishes its annual "World's Most Admired Companies" list. This year the magazine had 689 companies from 28 countries evaluated based on qualities that it calls "key attributes of reputation." This year's Most Admired rankings are based on those evaluations.

The Fortune "reputation attributes" include:

• Innovation
• People Management
• Use of Assets
• Social Responsibility
• Management Quality
• Financial Soundness
• Long-term investment
• Product Quality
• Global Competitiveness

These company evaluations are not completed by average consumers, Instead, the magazine relies on the opinions of investors, senior executives, outside industry directors, and financial analysts. So the "most admired" designation is most similar to Hollywood's Golden Globes, which are awarded based on the opinions of members of the Hollywood Foreign Press who follow and communicate about the U.S. film industry. Because the Fortune evaluations are not consumer-based, there is often a discrepancy between the rankings of certain companies and public opinion about those same organizations.

What follows is the list of U.S. retail industry companies which were awarded a spot on Fortune's 2009 "World's Most Admired Companies" list. The list below is arranged according to the numeric value assigned by Fortune after the expert evaluations were completed for each organization. The highest score possible is a perfect 10, which none of this year's evaluated retail companies earned.

8.53  Walt Disney

8.02  Nike

7.79  ExxonMobil

7.72  Google

7.72  McDonald's

7.62  Chevron

7.55  Royal Dutch Shell

7.47  Polo Ralph Lauren

7.29  Wal-Mart

7.09  VF

7.07  Apple

7.00  Amazon.com

6.92  Costco Wholesale

6.90  Target

6.87  Publix Super Markets

6.87  Safeway

6.85  Tupperware Brands

6.84  BP

6.84  Toyota Motor

6.80  ConocoPhillips

6.79  CVS/Caremark

6.70  Kroger

6.63  Best Buy

6.63  eBay

6.63  Starbucks

6.63  Yum Brands

6.62  Goodyear Tire & Rubber

6.59  Penske Automotive Group

6.50  BMW

6.49  Nordstrom

6.37  AutoNation

6.37  Darden Restaurants

6.36  Walgreen

6.32  CarMax

6.27  Phillips-Van Heusen

6.09  Lowe's

6.08  Home Depot

5.99  Honda Motor

5.93  Staples

5.81  JC Penney

5.64  Bridgestone

5.63  Levi Strauss

5.62  Limited Brands

5.33  Kohl's

5.22  Volkswagen

5.17  Nissan Motor

4.73  General Motors

4.57  Renault

2009 Least Admired Retail Industry Companies list