Competitive pricing, loyalty programs, customer engagement — retailers have many tactics to get customers into their stores and making purchases at their checkouts. However, sometimes all it takes is being a good retailer. In the recently released Good Company Retail Index, 52 of the nation's biggest retailers are ranked by how they treat employees, customers and the planet.

 

Industry experts Laurie Bassi, Ed Frauenheim and Dan McMurrer researched the companies to see where they rank among Americans who are more globally conscious and civic-minded in today's post-recession environment.

 

Each company was assessed on three measurements: its rating on Glassdoor.com, a website that collects feedback from employees at thousands of companies; its score from wRatings, a research firm that gathers consumer opinions; and its performance on the Newsweek Green Rankings, which assesses the environmental record of large companies.

 

The following retailers are particularly worthy of your business:

 

1. Apple

2. Ace Hardware

3. Dell

3. Office Depot

3. Staples

6. Whole Foods Market

7. Lowe's

8. The Home Depot

9. O'Reilly Automotive

10. Costco

 

Apple comes in first thanks to its excellent track record on customer satisfaction, highly positive employee feedback and a top 10% score on the Newsweek Green Rankings. Dell, Office Depot and Staples all tied in third place with home improvement specialists Lowe's and Home Depot also appearing on the list a few spots down.