CINCINNATI, Oct. 23, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Kroger Co.
(NYSE: KR) today announced its executive leadership team to support
the company's Restock Kroger Plan.
"Kroger is fortunate to have a leadership team that combines
deep experience with creative new talent as we strategically
reposition the company through our Restock Kroger
Plan," said Rodney McMullen,
Kroger's chairman and CEO.
Fred Morganthall, Kroger's
executive vice president of retail operations, will retire after 31
years of distinguished service, effective November 30. Mike
Donnelly, currently Kroger's executive vice president of
merchandising, will assume responsibility for both operations and
merchandising as executive vice president and chief operating
officer, effective November 1.
Kroger's key lines of business continue to be led by three
executive vice presidents who are driving execution of Restock
Kroger: Mr. Donnelly, Mike
Schlotman, who serves as executive vice president and chief
financial officer, and Chris Hjelm,
who serves as executive vice president and chief information
officer.
Fred Morganthall to Retire
after 31 Years of Service
Mr. Morganthall will retire from
the company after 31 years of service, and 44 years in the food
industry.
"There are few people in our industry as widely respected as
Fred," said Mr. McMullen. "He worked tirelessly to establish the
Harris Teeter brand and, after our merger, to help position Kroger
for future success. We've all benefited from Fred's passion for
grocery retail and operational excellence. We are grateful for
Fred's distinguished service and many contributions to Kroger and Harris Teeter, and we wish him and
his family all the best."
Mr. Morganthall's professional life began at Procter &
Gamble in 1973. His career in grocery retail began in 1978 at
Spartan Stores in Grand Rapids,
Mich., where he was responsible for grocery, frozen and
dairy purchasing as well as general merchandise and beauty care. In
1986, he joined Harris Teeter as director of grocery merchandising.
With Harris Teeter, Mr. Morganthall served in a number of executive
management positions, including vice president of merchandising,
vice president of distribution and vice president of operations
before being named president in 1997. Under his leadership, Harris
Teeter grew and firmly established its identity as a retailer that
provides exceptional customer service and in-store experience.
After the 2013 merger of Kroger and
Harris Teeter, Mr. Morganthall was named Kroger's senior
vice president in June 2015. He was
promoted to his current role, executive vice president of retail
operations, in September 2015.
Mr. Morganthall has been an active leader in industry
organizations, including serving as chair of the Food Marketing
Institute. In 2016, FMI honored him with its most prestigious
leadership recognition, the Sidney R.
Rabb Award.
Mr. Morganthall and his wife, Judy, plan to spend time with
family, especially grandchildren, and look forward to traveling
together.
Mike Donnelly Named Executive Vice President and Chief
Operating Officer
Mr. Donnelly, Kroger's executive vice
president of merchandising, will assume responsibility for the
company's operations and merchandising as EVP and COO, effective
November 1.
"Mike and his team will help us redefine the food and grocery
experience for customers and drive sales," said Mr. McMullen. "By
bringing merchandising and operations together under Mike's
leadership, we will build synergies between our teams and
accelerate our efforts to establish a truly seamless customer
experience."
Mr. Donnelly began his career at Fry's Food Stores in
California in 1978. He advanced to
several leadership positions at Fry's, including district
management. He was named vice president of merchandising for Fry's
in 1995 and promoted to president of the Fry's division in 2000. He
has served as Kroger's senior vice president of drug/GM, president
of the company's Ralphs division, and senior vice president of
merchandising before being promoted to his current position in
2015.
At The Kroger Co., we are dedicated to our purpose: to Feed
the Human SpiritTM. We are 450,000 associates
who serve nearly nine million customers daily in 2,793 retail food
stores under a variety of local banner names in 35 states and the
District of Columbia. Our Family
of Companies operates an expanding ClickList offering – a
personalized order online service – in addition to 2,258
pharmacies, 783 convenience stores, 307 fine jewelry stores, 222
retail health clinics, 1,472 supermarket fuel centers and 38 food
production plants in the United
States. Our Company has been recognized as one of America's
most generous companies for our support of more than 100 Feeding
America food bank partners, breast cancer research and awareness,
the military and their families, and more than 145,000 community
organizations including schools. As a leader in supplier diversity,
we are a proud member of the Billion Dollar Roundtable.
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SOURCE The Kroger Co.