Personnel Updates:
Ahold USA said that Rick Herring, President of the Giant-Carlisle division, plans to retire effective Feb. 14 after nearly 25 years with the company. Bhavdeep Singh, Exec VP of Operations at Ahold USA, will oversee the Giant-Carlisle division on an interim basis until a successor to Herring is named.
Associated Grocers of Louisiana, based in Baton Rouge, said it has named Emile R. Breaux to succeed J.H. “Jay” Campbell upon Campbell’s planned retirement “within the next few years.”
Fairway Group Holdings said that CEO Herb Ruetsch will retire after 15 years with the company. Company President William Sanford will serve as interim CEO as the board looks for a successor. Fairway also said it planned to streamline its operations with the hope of saving up to $4 million a year. In addition, Fairway named two co-presidents to succeed Sanford: Kevin McDonnell was promoted to co-president and COO, and Edward Arditte was promoted to co-president and CFO.
Kings Food Markets announced a number of executive promotions: Joseph Parisi has been promoted to VP of Operations. Karen Roche has been promoted to Senior Director of Marketing. Arthur Goncalves has been promoted to Director of Seafood Sales and Merchandising and will report to VP of Produce, Floral, Seafood and Meat Paul Kneeland. Maryann Klejmont and Emilio Romeo were also promoted to the position of Area Director.
The Kroger Co. said that Jay Cummins, has been serving as President of Kroger’s Mid-Atlantic division, has been named President of the Smith’s Food and Drug Stores division. He succeeds Mark Tuffin, who was named Senior VP of retail divisions in December. Joe Fey, President of the company’s QFC division, has been named president of Kroger’s Mid-Atlantic division, succeeding Cummins in that role.
Stater Bros. Markets has promoted John Ciraulo to the position of VP of the meat division. He replaces Kevin Schubert, who will retire in March after 39 years of service. It also has named Darold Fero Senior VP, distribution, a new position. It also has hired Michael Reed as Senior Director of real estate.
Spinx Co. announced that Stewart Spinx has been appointed Chairman. Stan Sorti has been promoted to President.
Unified Grocers, the Los Angeles-based retailer-owned cooperative, has named Leon Bergmann to the new post of Exec VP, Sales and Procurement.
Financial Focus:
Delhaize Inc. generated US revenues of $17.1 billion.
Industry Insight:
The Dominick’s in Park Ridge, IL, will be reopened by Mariano’s on Feb. 18. It is the first of 11 stores to be converted by Mariano’s parent company, Roundy’s Supermarkets, which acquired the stores last month for $36 million.
Nichols Foodservice of Wallace, NC is shutting down the company at the end of March. President J.L. Nichols cited the bad economy and the loss of business a year earlier as reasons for the company closing its doors.
Mergers and Acquisitions:
Brookshire Brothers said it has agreed to acquire David’s Supermarkets, a 25-store chain in North-Central Texas. Terms were not disclosed. David’s Supermarkets, founded in 1964, is owned by the Waldrip family. It is based in Grandview, Texas, and also operates a distribution center near there, which will be included in the acquisition.
Casey’s General Stores Inc. signed a purchase agreement to acquire 24 Stop-n-Go convenience stores. Twenty of the stores are located in North Dakota, while the remaining four are in Minnesota.
Joe Caputo & Sons Fruit Market IGA has acquired four Dominick’s locations in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. Terms were not disclosed. The stores are in the process of being converted and will reopen in late March/early April according to the company.
Northgate Gonzalez Market and Cardenas Markets formed Cardenas Northgate Group Ranch (CNG Ranch LLC) to acquire and operate the 11-unit Pro’s Ranch Markets. The purchase price is $55 million. Pro’s, based in Phoenix, operates seven stores in Arizona, two in new Mexico and two in Texas. It filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy last May. It had estimated sales of $350 million in 2013.
Susser Holdings completed its acquisition of 47 Sac-N-Pac locations.
Real Estate:
Sprouts Farmers Market is planning five stores in the Atlanta area, its first ones in the East. The locations are scheduled to open this year, and local real estate experts say they expect more to follow. The strategy will mirror past expansions in Texas and Colorado, CEO and President Doug Sanders said.
