When Brian Shea was 15 years old, he had no doubt in his mind where his first job was going to be: Wegmans. The regional supermarket was the job of his dreams.

“Wegmans is a good company,” Shea said. “My sister worked there and Wegmans has a good reputation with their employees.”

Now, six years later, Shea, a junior political science major, is still with Wegmans. Starting out working on the weekends as a cashier, he later did accounting for two years and then moved up to the Nature’s Market department.

Ask him what he loves about Wegmans and he’ll give you a good idea of why Wegmans is no ordinary supermarket. It is known for its variety of places to eat. There’s something for everybody: sushi, subs, pizza, Chinese food, even a cafe. It’s like a mini-restaurant, Shea said.

Shea said when he was off duty, he would grab a sub at the sub shop. For him, Wegmans’ subs are better than Subway’s.

“You’ll never go hungry there,” he said.

Another aspect of Wegmans that Shea loves is its good and knowledgeable customer service team.

“Say if you went to the cheese department, the employee helping you there really knows their cheese,” he said.

Employees take classes to become more familiar with the products that they are selling so they can better help the customers, he said.

But above all, Shea believes the friendships you build while working at Wegmans are the best part about working there.

“You build a camaraderie with the people around you that’ll last a lifetime,” Shea said.

According to Shea, one of the many benefits of working at Wegmans is the quality of treatment of employees. This isn’t surprising, considering Wegmans has been on Fortune Magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list for 12 consecutive years; for the past six years, Wegmans has been in the top 10.

“They really go out of their way to help us out,” he said. “They’re very flexible. When I needed time off, for whatever reason, Wegmans had no issues with it and [they] were very accommodating.”

Over the years, Wegmans has contributed financial support to many employees who are pursuing their educational goals. Shea was one of the recipients of the Wegmans Scholarship.

“We all know college can be expensive, so every little bit helps,” he said. “Wegmans gives more than any other company. They want to see you succeed.”

Shea said working at Wegmans allowed him to learn many valuable lessons and it gave him the tools needed to succeed.

“One of the things I’ve learned is effective communication,” he said. “Working at Wegmans, I’ve gotten to know many of the customers’ names and developed a relationship with them. But I’ve also dealt with difficult customers. Like any job, it’s just the nature of the job. But I wouldn’t be successful without Wegmans.”

His communication skills came in handy as an intern and subsequent liaison to former New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Currently, Shea is interning at the New York State Assembly in Albany. He plans on coming back to Binghamton University full time next semester and graduating next May. After that, it’s either graduate school or law school.

But Wegmans is still very much part of his life, whether he’s doing his grocery shopping or working.

“Wegmans was a good stepping stone for me,” he said. “But it’s also nice to know that the door is always open.”