Supermarket, Grocery, & C-Store
• The Food Industry Association has promoted Ashley Eisenbeiser to VP of Food and Product Safety. Peter Collins has been promoted to VP of Business Development and Membership. Deborah Stewart has been promoted to Director of Registration Services.
• Foxtrot Ventures Inc is reopening its second store location in Dallas, TX.
• Fry’s Food and Drug Stores has recently opened a new 125,600 sq. ft. in Gilbert, AZ.
• The Kroger Co. has named Brent Stewart as its new President for its QFC Division.
• The Raley’s Companies has promoted Paul Gianetto to the role of President of its operating Division. Natalie Slatter has been promoted to VP Store operations.
• Sprouts Farmers Market has plans to open seven new stores in Florida this year.
• Vallarta Supermarkets will open a new 45,100 sq. ft. store in Modesto, CA, this week.
Retail
• Bargain Hunt has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and is closing all its stores by the end of the month.
• Beyond, Inc. has entered into a deal to acquire Buy Buy Baby.
• Builders FirstSource Inc. has acquired O.C. Cluss Lumber Co. with locations in MD, PA, and WV.
• Caleres has named Brian Costello as Chief Merchandising Officer of Famous Footwear.
• Cole Haan has opened a new 1,622 sq. ft. store in New York City, NY. The retailer anticipates opening five more new stores this year.
• Curtis Lumber Co. Inc. has acquired Jay-K Independent Lumber Corp.
• Fleet Feet Inc. reported it plans to open at least 15 new store locations in 2025.
• Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings has appointed Eric Van der Valk as President and CEO.
• Peavey Industries Ltd. is going out of business, and closing all its Peavey Mart stores in Canada.
• Tibbetts Lumber announced Dave Stauter, President and COO, will retire from the company at the end of the year. Joe Sanchez has been promoted to COO during the transition period.
• US LBM Holdings, LLC has acquired Walker Lumber Company.
• Victoria’s Secret & Co. has reported Timothy Johnson, Chief Administrative Officer and CFO, is retiring in June 2025. Scott Sekella has been appointed CFO.
• Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming plans to open more than 70 new locations in 2025, in CA, MD, MT, ND, OR, and WA.
Restaurant
• Dine Brands has laid off 9% of their corporate staff.
• Cracker Barrel is running a special promotion that will offer all customers double reward points on all dishes that use eggs. The company is also going against competitors by not charging a surcharge on eggs due to the bird flu outbreak.
• Popeyes is planning to do a systemwide rollout of its new kitchen redesign that will improve efficiency and the employee experience.
• Red Lobster is launching the Ocean Sustainability Challenge, a program for middle school students that allows them to come up with innovative solutions to issues affecting oceans and waterways.
• Sonny’s has named George McAllan as Chief Growth Officer.
• Taco Bell has reported that same-store sales grew by 5% during the 4th quarter. The company said the growth was driven by their Decades menu and their decision to lean into value options.
• Yum! Brands has created a new AI-driven platform called Byte by Yum! that will house all of the companies technology solutions across their brands.
