2023 SW Emerging Leaders

The Shelby Report of the Southwest is pleased to honor...

Chris Bain Brookshire Grocery Co. Senior Manager Partner Development Chris has been a dedicated employee of Brookshire Grocery Co. for more than 30 years.

He began his career in retail operations, serving in several

Trent Brewer Schraad Sales & Marketing Associate Director, Business Intelligence Trent Brewer has made a big impact in his short 18 months with the company, emerging as a true leader in the business intelligence space. Trent has an extensive technical background in data mining, analysis and modeling, as well as database administration and specific technology software tools such as PowerBI. Since joining Schraad, Trent developed the core data model that enabled the launch of a proprietary business

Erica Campos Kroger DSD/Adult Beverage Specialist Erica Campos has been with Kroger for 14 years. At Kroger, we have a very diverse workforce, with associates from all walks of life in our stores. To Erica, being inclusive means we validate our associates’ views and ideas, and they are encouraged to share their perspectives.

Erica has made major contributions to diversity and

Lori Castillo NatureSweet VP Marketing Lori Castillo is the first female VP of marketing for NatureSweet, a leading produce company that provides fresh, greenhouse-grown vegetables to more than 150 major supermarket retailers throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico, and is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. The company employs 6,000-plus people. She’s been instrumental in its growth, which generates more than half a million dollars in sales, annually.

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positions and ultimately advancing to become a successful store director for many years.

He was later promoted to a corporate human resource role where he has continued to grow and advance. He now leads the company's training and development area as the senior manager of partner development.

Chris is an active member and participant in the company's DE&I Council. This group promotes, educates and positively impacts employees and communities through its efforts. As a company leader, Chris has shown an appreciation

for the value of an inclusive and diverse workforce.

He's hired and trained a diverse array of employees over the years. He works unselfishly to advocate and promote fairness in his decisions, oversight of his team and creation of inclusive development programs.

Chris is a person of unquestionable integrity and exemplifies the company's core values. He is truly an ambassador for the company and helps employees deliver exceptional service through his span of influence over training programs.

intelligence system known as Archie. Archie is Schraad’s cutting-edge, interactive analytics platform that transforms complex data into straightforward sales metrics accessible in real time. Archie creates transparency to actionable insights.

These actionable insights enable the Schraad’s sales team to take action when it matters most and will have the biggest impact on sales.

Trent also led the company’s efforts to develop different end-user personas that have guided the development of the Archie interface. The seamless interaction and intuitive design led to fast adoption rates of the Archie systems and has enabled the insights that Archie unlocks to become a critical point of difference for driving sales of the companies that Schraad is proud to represent.

As Trent looks to the future and continues to evolve the product road map for Archie, he sees a lot more data sources

in Archie’s future. He’s convinced that as Archie incorporates additional data sources such as panel data and available retailer data on consumption, the insights will continue to become more precise and the impact of the actions Schraad’s sales team stronger.

Trent also embodies Schraad’s company values by being committed to giving back to his community. Having spent time in the non-profit industry prior to joining Schraad, Trent has invested an immense amount of time giving back to the Oklahoma City community through some of the top nonprofits in the area, including the OKC recycling association.

Though Trent is an accomplished cello player, having earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in music, he spends most of his downtime with his wife and two young boys that are ages 2 and 4.

inclusion projects within the division. She served on the division’s Associate Insight Action Planning Committee and worked to create an environment where associates feel like they belong. As a result, the division created several action items that were implemented in all 108 stores in the Houston Division.

With knowledge learned through both internal and external opportunities, she incorporates diversity and inclusion in her daily work.

Erica is working on a project to expand our Hispanic products, which is critical in Texas, where Hispanics are now the majority of the population. She is consistently collaborating with vendors with product assortments as it relates to multicultural and having the right flavor profiles.

In 2022, she completed the Food Marketing Institute’s Future Leaders Program, which connected her with retailers across the company. Through that program, she learned about the impact of the pandemic on the grocery business and how companies could collaborate to solve the issues. Erica also learned about grocery trends, where to get information about them and the importance of monitoring trends.

Always looking for opportunities to serve, Erica volunteers her time for events that give back to children and her community. She has volunteered at a food bank, helped underserved youth suffering from food insecurity by packing lunches at the Kids’ Meal Packing Event and volunteered at the Honoring our Heroes event that supported our troops.

Lori began with the company close to nine years ago as a senior brand manager and was promoted to marketing director. Today, she manages global marketing and leads all commercial operations in Mexico, leading 21 people and managing a $25 million budget. In 2016, Lori was voted the Groundbreaking Associate of the Year for her hard work, passion and commitment to the company.

Prior to taking a job in the agricultural industry, Lori worked for Proctor & Gamble, where she helped build Covergirl Cosmetics to a $1 billion brand. Before that, she was a finance specialist at JPMorgan Chase for six years.

Lori currently serves as chair of the board of directors for Texas Public Radio, a statewide nonprofit. She also serves as a foundation board member for Texas A&M UniversitySan Antonio and sits on the board of directors for the San

Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. She is a member of Leadership San Antonio Class 42 and gave back to the program as a member of the steering committee for LSA’s 45th class.

Lori earned her MBA from Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business and a bachelor’s degree from the Mays Business School at Texas A&M University.

Beyond overseeing all marketing initiatives that have led NatureSweet toward a goal of transforming the agricultural industry by improving the lives of its workers, Lori is the proud wife to a high school athletic director and head football coach. When she’s not in a board room, greenhouse or on a Zoom call, she can be found at an athletic event, supporting the Lobo Nation or mentoring students and helping them to build confidence to achieve their goals.

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Chris Herpich Vericast Executive Director Chris leads omnichannel sales for Vericast, with a focus on delivering advertising impact for grocery and retail marketers in the West. He leads a team responsible for providing solutions to help grocers and other retailers drive foot traffic and sales to brickand-mortar locations and e-commerce platforms.

Chris has been with Vericast for eight years in a variety of roles, progressing up to a leadership role in 2018. When Chris joined the grocery vertical, he made it a mission to

Todd Herrenbruck Schraad Sales & Marketing Director of Sales-Non-Food/Variety Having joined the company a little over a year ago, Todd has made a huge impact on the business. His insightful approach to growing brands and building value-added customer relationships has led to a 300 percent increase in sales for the portfolio of brands represented by Schraad at VMC. Todd’s approach begins with partnering with VMC and, as importantly, ensuring that the entirety of the merchandising and sales ecosystem is properly informed and influenced for each of the buying groups, driving incredible sales results for CPGs.

Justin Jackson Kroger Store Leader Diversity and inclusion are two very important aspects of leadership. With nine years of service at Kroger, Justin Jackson strives each day to ensure that our associates work in a building that is inclusive, accepting and welcoming of diversity on a broad scale. By driving diversity and inclusion through his passion for people and results, he is working to develop all associates into great leaders.

Justin believes that leaders must be intentional and lead with a purpose. An important goal of his is to ensure our associates feel like valued members of our team each

Justin Jones Kroger Store Leader Creating an environment where everyone feels welcomed, supported and included is important to Justin Jones. He actively seeks input from colleagues with different backgrounds and perspectives, making sure everyone’s ideas are heard.

Investing in and promoting associates is a way Justin showcases his leadership abilities. He has worked on several projects, such as building a mentorship committee, and has

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know and understand it as if he was raised in it.

He is currently involved with and has chaired many committees for Illuminators, an organization of vendors and suppliers within the grocery industry dedicated to providing opportunities for education and leadership and supporting the Illuminators Educational Foundation. He headed up the largest ever golf tournament at 2023 WAFC. He is a graduate of USC Food Industry Executive Management program and gained approval to enroll many on his team. He is also an active member of NextUp Northern California and was a participant in its national Rising Star leadership program.

Through all this, Chris has built credibility and industry knowledge and brings a true consultative approach to everything he does. He showcased all of this in a recent The Shelby Report live webinar “What Grocery Shoppers Really

Want.”

Since becoming a leader in grocery, Chris has driven year-overyear revenue growth for Vericast and has delivered successful EMERGING sales-driving events for clients.

Chris is a servant leader who focuses on developing his team by understanding what makes them tick motivationally and challenging them to develop their talents and innate skills.

He loves challenging clients to capture growth by addressing emerging opportunities and leveraging the insights from data to deliver sales growth for clients. He is a change agent, listening to clients' needs and developing new solutions to drive their business.

Todd develops impactful merchandising strategies that are shaped to the advantage of the AWG/VMC store footprint and customer base. He also advocates for distribution of products that will deliver a high return for the AWG/VMC store customers and position the retailer to be competitive, with more aggressive national retailers within the mass and dollar channel.

This tailored approach to merchandising and detailed, consistent influence on the merchandising decision-makers across all buying groups within VMC, drives incredible sales results for the CPGs, as well as AWG. One specific client, who switched broker representation to Schraad early last year, saw 62.5 percent growth sales (more than $2 million) by the work Todd and his team were able to do. They gained new points of distribution and implemented a shipper merchandising program that led to more than 2,000 displays in store. A second client saw similar results, with a 71 percent increase in sales.

As this business continues to build, Schraad has begun to deploy a vertically integrated sales coverage team that provides sales support and influences critical touch points within the VMC organization, ensuring clients represented by Schraad achieve growth targets and deliver value to the AWG/ VMC members.

Throughout the years, Todd has served at a number of charities and dedicated his time to giving back to his community. Today, his time is spent on an even more personal cause. With the support of his loving wife, Todd is caring for his mother, who has transitioned to an independent living facility and has been losing her short-term memory.

Unless traveling, Todd stops by each morning to bring her a newspaper and have coffee with her. He then stops by each evening on his way home from work to make sure she has had her dinner and is tucked in for the night. As in all that he does, nothing is overlooked in the care and support he gives.

day. He believes honesty and integrity are two essential components of driving a culture of diversity and inclusion.

Every team member must know that they are accepted and valued by their store leader, and this trickles down through the leadership team, promoting an inclusive atmosphere throughout the store.

One thing that is very important to Justin is spending quality time with associates and getting to know something personal about them each day. He believes a very integral part of diversity and inclusion is acceptance and supporting each associate equally. During his most recent store assignment, he has been working to drive diversity and inclusion by building a culture of “friendly.” Through this, he hopes to see a stronger foundation and relationship between the store associates and the leadership team, built on trust, respect and teamwork.

As a member of the Young Professionals Associate Resource Group, Justin has participated with the Meals

on Wheels program, which is dedicated to packaging meals for children who are less fortunate. This program is extremely important to the ARG’s community outreach, as it allows members to continue to showcase their tremendous appreciation of the community we serve. Being a father to his 10-year-old, Mya, has made Meals on Wheels a program that he feels very passionate about and will continue to support and drive.

Justin exudes leadership qualities and is always open to learning more ways to improve. He participated in FMI – The Food Industry Association’s Future Leaders Experience, which taught him different innovative ways to excel in leadership. This included collaboration of a team, coaching and developing others, culture shaping and building personal connections. Through his participation in this program, he was able to grow his role as a future leader and use that knowledge to inspire others to do the same.

promoted a variety of associates from different backgrounds and levels. He promoted 12 assistant store managers, leading to 45 promotions of peers in 2022. Additionally, he invested in and trained 44 associates from his previous store assignment into high leadership roles.

Committed to serving his community, in 2021, Justin help lead the Comida Food Drive, where he worked with the Houston Police Department to provide 100 holiday dinners to families in need.

The following year, he helped support more than 250 families. And in 2023, he and his team packed and delivered food to more than 400 families. Through this project, they were also able to help donate gifts for kids. With this event being such a large collaborative effort, he was glad to see so many people and organizations come together to make

a difference. He also credits his colleagues from different industries for their support.

Justin serves as the co-chair lead for the Houston Division Multicultural Associate Resource Group and a young professionals mentor. He has also participated in several leadership training programs over the past few years and received his Retail Management Certification from San Jacinto College.

He rolled out the first wave of the in-stock solutions initiative, as well as piloted and directed top stock and meat fresh production at his previous store assignment. A reliable leader in the division, his store served as one of three training stores for department leaders in 2022.

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Evelyn Lopez Kroger Operations Field Specialist Evelyn Lopez has led a 13-year career with Kroger with the mindset of treating others how she wants to be treated. She makes sure there is always mutual respect between herself and others. She speaks to

Janquita Oliver Kroger Store Leader Janquita Oliver has 21 years of experience with The Kroger Co. Equality is of the utmost importance to Janquita, as she feels everyone should be treated and trained equally and that everyone’s voice and opinion matters.

Leticia McMurdo STAR Brokerage Sales & Marketing Senior Business Manager Leticia McMurdo is the definition of emerging talent in the grocery industry. Starting her broker sales agency career when she was

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everyone and makes them feel included.

Evelyn takes the initiative to help diversify the workforce at Kroger. She participates in career days to help others find their paths. She also makes sure she implements Kroger’s Core Values when developing talent through training associates of all levels of experience.

Committed to serving her community, Evelyn has assisted with events such as the division’s tornado relief efforts and the Honoring our Heroes event, as well as working with the Multi-Cultural Associate Resource Group.

To hone her leadership skills, she attended the Texas

A&M University Retail Summit, where she learned about innovation, how to improve customer shopping experience, how the retail business operated during and EMERGING after COVID-19 and leading with authenticity.

Incorporating diversity and inclusion in her daily work, she is open to associates at all levels and builds intentional relationships with every associate.

A trusted leader, Janquita set up the first food pantry for associates in need. This has now become a division-wide initiative and resource available to associates in all 108 Houston Division stores. She’s also worked with the Race Card Project with the Young Professionals Associate Resource Group by utilizing the cards that had different cultural aspects in her team huddles.

During the movement surrounding George Floyd’s murder,

Janquita served as a leader in the division to help share the concerns and feedback of associates that were impacted.

Recognized by the division as a high performing store leader, she has participated in several leadership opportunities within the division, including Great People Review Day. She also has served as a store leader development program mentor and district mentor chair.

Janquita believes that everyone is trainable, people want to grow and learn and that you have to build relationships, so they are comfortable sharing what their gaps are and trust that you are there to support them.

18 years old, Leticia has an impressive amount of experience under her belt.

Today, Leticia is making strategic sales decisions to empower and drive her AWG key account team to success.

She is a natural-born sales leader and negotiator, bringing energy and passion to the organization daily.

Leticia works closely with some of the top industry food and beverage brand clients at STAR Brokerage, responsible for managing more than $15 million in annual sales across key retailers and wholesalers in Texas and beyond, including

AWG, El Rancho and Albertson’s Southern Division, to name a few.

Leticia’s customer knowability and likability, coupled with her experience and sales accountability, have earned her a reputation of trust and respect among all who work with her.

Her specialty in selling Hispanic brands and collaborating with Hispanic retailers is crucially relevant in today’s everchanging consumer palate and population.

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Taylor Meade Community Coffee National Account Manager Taylor Meade has brought years of e-commerce and retail experience to the regionally strong company to grow its e-commerce/ omnichannel sales across the U.S.

Lindsey Miller Brookshire Grocery Co. Asset Protection and Safety Manager Lindsey has a proven history of results within the asset protection team and is well respected by his peers, as well as the store leadership he supports.

Lindsey has worked closely with other operational counterparts in accounting, human resources and store operations to make improvements to the overall operations of the company. His ability to research

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This includes managing marketplaces such as Amazon and contributing to the omnichannel success of large retailers such as Walmart, Target, Kroger and H-E-B. Taylor’s background has given her the ability to understand and execute plans to grow loyal consumption and introduce the brand to new consumers through the variety of ways consumers shop today, which continue to evolve.

Taylor previously worked at Coravin, a wine preservation system, where she rose through the ranks quickly from her first position as a regional manager into managing national

accounts.

She worked cross-functionally to open up numerous national accounts, develop products and appear as a spokeswoman on Amazon Live and Neiman Marcus platforms.

She is inspirational to work with and knows what it means to value partnerships in order to achieve goals of the company, as well as the buyers and retailers she works closely with.

and investigate potential fraud and theft has earned him the distinction of being our asset protection trainer for new asset protection partners that join the company.

Lindsey has been a long-standing member of the Loss Prevention Foundation, where he completed his loss prevention certification. He is an active member of the North Texas Certified Fraud Examiners group.

Lindsey was recently promoted to his current role, where he has continued to exceed expectations as a leader with BGC. Here are a few examples of projects and initiatives Lindsey has led or collaborated with other teams on in the past six months: • Creation and implementation of the asset protection and safety review.

• Restructure and alignment of the entire asset protection department to better serve the stores.

• Prepared content and gave a presentation at the first asset protection and safety academy.

• Worked with retail operations to create a high waste audit.

Lindsey has continued to manage the day-to-day asset protection functions of his stores while also developing and leading his team of asset protection specialists. Lindsey maintains a positive attitude. He is not only proactive to solve problems but always strives for a win-win solution to help the stores and districts that he serves.

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Mason Miller Schraad Sales & Marketing Director, Business Development After spending the first half of his career with Hy-Vee, Mason Miller joined the food broker business and will be celebrating his five-year anniversary with Schraad Sales & Marketing this fall.

During his tenure with Schraad, he has emerged as a true sales leader for the Iowa market by driving several CPGs’

Amit Patel NatureSweet Marketing Innovation Director Amit Patel’s remarkable career in the retail grocery industry, coupled with his exceptional leadership qualities and community service work, make him a truly deserving candidate for this honor.

Throughout his career, Amit has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to transforming the retail grocery industry. With a focus on marketing and category management spanning from center store to perimeter fresh grocery, Amit has continuously pushed the boundaries

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businesses at Hy-Vee and Fareway.

Mason’s expertise has enabled him to implement a number of promotional and merchandising programs that are turn-key to execute within the unique stores of Hy-Vee and Fareway and that also drive sales with the Iowa consumers.

One such program was recognized with a Golden Penguin Award in March for the All-Marketing campaign. It resulted in a 22 percent increase in sales for the brand and customer.

Through collaboration with Hy-Vee’s category manager, Mason was also able to develop a category plan that solved for critical, competitive supply issues. This plan resulted in a 108 percent increase in sales for the category.

While this details only two examples of Mason’s sales leadership, since representing Schraad within the Iowa market, Mason and his team have grown sales of their CPG EMERGING clients by more 300 percent through this more tailored and innovative sales approach.

In his personal time, Mason is dedicated to giving back to his local community. He serves his local church by welcoming new attendees and prospective members, as well as developing new people serving within the welcome team.

of innovation to enhance the shopping experience for customers.

In particular, his dedication to promoting healthier eating habits and supporting mission-driven companies stands out. Through his visionary approach, Amit has successfully introduced innovative produce options, encouraging consumers to make healthier choices. His ability to tell compelling stories, combined with his passion for innovation, has proven instrumental in transforming the industry.

Amit's leadership qualities are truly exemplary. His ability to motivate and inspire others has resulted in remarkable achievements within his organization. His colleagues admire his relentless pursuit of excellence and his talent for bringing out the best in those around him. Amit's leadership style fosters collaboration and empowers his team to exceed expectations. Through his guidance, he has created a culture

of continuous improvement, where individuals are motivated to strive for excellence.

Beyond his professional achievements, Amit is deeply committed to making a positive impact in his community. He serves on the board of a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing education in underserved areas of San Antonio. He also has a passion to reduce food insecurity and helped trial/ pilot a program to help with these efforts in partnership with the San Antonio Food Bank.

Amit's combined efforts in his career and community service work showcase his exceptional contributions to society. He embodies the values of innovation, passion and commitment to social responsibility. His transformative impact on the retail grocery industry and his dedication to advancing education in underserved communities make him an outstanding candidate for this award.

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THE SHELBY REPORT OF THE SOUTHWEST • AUGUST 2023

Jack Pattengale Clements Foods Director of Production/Plant Manager In his dual role, Jack Pattengale directly oversees the processing of raw peanuts into peanut butter at the company's facility in Lewisville, Texas, and indirectly oversees

Shawn Pickrell Lowes Markets Director of Construction In his nomination, Shawn Pickrell’s nominator stated: “I have had the privilege of working with Shawn since 2007. It all started when I was on the corporate side of the business. Shawn dealt with

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production at its Oklahoma City food plant.

Jack possesses exceptional leadership skills. He has excellent verbal and written communication skills. Jack has the uncanny ability to foresee potential challenges in the production process and be proactive in solving those challenges. He takes personal equity in the business and leads/manages like it were his own.

Jack's father spent his career in food sales, so he has a deep appreciation for the sales and marketing function in a company – a rarity with production people. Jack is somewhat

of an “old soul.” He exhibits gifts/abilities and wisdom far beyond his chronological age. Jack's strongest attribute is his willingness to take on hard tasks. He identifies the problem and seeks to solve it.

Jack is a team player and checks his ego at the door.

Emerging leaders are high-potential professionals early in their careers. They are aspirational and energetic in their approaches to their jobs/careers. Jack is all of that and more.

He has an amazing career in front of him in the food industry.

many of my reps back in those days, and whomever he dealt with always made a point of advising how straight-up Shawn was. He was challenging but always honest and to the point, something not seen much today.

“When he was seeking a solution, he explained his concerns and allowed us to go to work as the experts in our fields. He took all the information from us and came back with questions or concerns, but always allowed us to find the solution.

“I have worked with Shawn under two different manufacturers and now as the owner of my own company.

While some cases have been a challenge, we have always had a working relationship that I value more each day.

"The ability to be able to communicate freely and openly, makes all the difference. If I say it will work, Shawn allows me to do exactly that – make it work.

“I am very fortunate that all our offerings have worked, and we intend to keep it that way. Trust, integrity and honesty make for an incredible working partnership that has sustained 15 years. I look forward to the future.”

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Lauren Schraad Schraad Sales & Marketing Manager Marketing/Brand Ambassador Lauren Schraad joined the company in 2019. Prior to Schraad, she held positions at creative firms in Dallas for accounts including AT&T, Texas Tourism and American Airlines. Lauren’s experience on both agency and client sides of the business led to the opportunity to manage a full rebrand of Schraad Sales & Marketing, modernizing the look of the organization and repositioning message and marketing collateral to better represent Schraad’s comprehensive suite of CPG retail services.

As part of this initiative, she directed the development of social and digital strategies to help elevate the company’s

Treva Simonton STAR Brokerage Sales & Marketing VP Lubbock Division – STAR Treva has exclusively managed all aspects of sales for her clients, calling on Affiliated Foods and United Supermarkets since 2012.

Kara Sourwine Kroger Store Leader Kara Sourwine is intentional about making everyone feel as though they belong and want to come to work each and every day. An associate of 10 years, she does her best to adapt to different learning styles to make sure that she can successfully coach and train every associate she encounters.

Kara is a leader who makes sure that her teams know that they are appreciated daily by just saying “thank you” and treating everyone with the utmost respect. She has served as a coach and mentor for various leadership programs and

Fernanda Suarez NatureSweet Sustainability and Social Impact Director Fernanda has been in the company for 5.5 years, starting in human resources and later moving to the sustainability area. During the time that she has worked with

Monica Versiamo Clements Foods Director of Logistics Monica Versiamo is a highly motivated young lady with excellent leadership and communication skills. Her contribution to Clements Foods is

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profile, increase brand visibility and ultimately capture the attention of CPG companies interested in utilizing Schraad’s capabilities to build their brands. In just the past six months, the company’s website has seen a significant increase in qualified traffic, tracking 16,000 new visitors since January.

Recently, Lauren led efforts on category-specific campaigns to promote March Frozen Food Month and June Dairy Month. The campaigns focused on highlighting the benefits of each category through visual storytelling on digital channels. By incorporating video elements into the integrated marketing mix, the company was able to showcase its category expertise and drive retailer awareness of the categories, including their impact on sales and profit.

These campaigns generated interest in highly visual content for a targeted audience on digital sales channels.

Recognizing that these services were essential for Schraad's clients to thrive in a rapidly evolving omnichannel market, Lauren and the marketing team developed digital marketing capabilities with the capacity to expand and cater to the

needs of our CPG and retail clients.

At Schraad, we are proud to support the communities where we work and live, believing that a strong company should EMERGING give back to the strong communities that support them. Like the diverse portfolio of brands we represent, we volunteer our time and provide fundraising support for a range of charitable causes.

Lauren dedicates an enormous amount of time to planning team involvement for annual events such as the Alzheimer’s Association’s Walk to End ALZ. Last year, through fundraising efforts, the team was able to donate $24,000 to the organization in support of its mission to find a cure. She also oversees company volunteer outings throughout the year for organizations such as the regional food bank.

She’s an asset to her team, company, clients and customers.

Growing sales for a client portfolio north of $20 million annually, it’s Treva’s attention to detail from an administrative perspective and friendly customer service that has given her an edge.

Treva deeply understands what it takes to successfully grow sales and distribution in the grocery wholesale business.

She’s laser-focused on executing the right deals and marketing programs that deliver ROI while simultaneously providing her retail team with all the sales tools and coaching necessary to

execute at store level.

Her ability to manage the sales process, see it to the end, always knowing what hoops to jump through or avoid are the detail-oriented foundation that makes her an emerging leader in the industry.

extracurricular activities associated with The Kroger Co. Kara is also well-versed in identifying talent. She is a member of the Young Professionals Associate Resource Group as part of the Membership Committee, which discovers new talent within the division to bring along on their journey. She helped five participants of the Store Leadership Development Program along their training journey, and she helps coach and develop existing e-commerce associates.

As a respected leader in the division, she has been trusted with identifying new talent within the district to become future leaders. Kara also partners with the division’s district specialist to create a development plan that caters to the associates’ opportunities. The knowledge that Kara has instilled in the trainees has been extremely beneficial for their careers.

Her journey as a high-performing store leader has provided her an opportunity to explore and examine the

layers of her management style, as well as her personal characteristics. This has made Kara a stronger leader as she has been able to identify both her strengths and weaknesses to build the most effective team.

Upon arrival at her most recent assignment, she had an opportunity to coach and train a manager on duty who was struggling to find his place on the team. With her assistance, she was able to coach the associate in becoming more knowledgeable about the business and translated her teaching into practice by assigning the associate exercises to help retain and implement the information she shared.

As a result of her coaching and training, the associate became knowledgeable about all departments throughout the store, gained the respect of the team and is now utilized as a point of reference.

the company, and specifically in her current position, she has been able to demonstrate her leadership skills.

Recently, NatureSweet was certified as a B-Corp company.

To get this certification, the company was evaluated on the highest verified standards of social and economic performance, public transparency and accountability and that it positively impacts communities and environments.

Fernanda’s dedication, sensibility, hard work, leadership and commitment led the company to success in this certification process. She diligently navigated the team

through the process and at the same time inspired us to strive for sustainable and ethical business practices continually.

vital to our success. From scheduling production to oversight of label design and inventory, her duties are crucial to our clients getting their shipments on time and complete.

Monica's temperament is her strongest attribute. She doesn't panic under pressure. She seeks to solve the problem and proactively implement corrective actions. Monica has excellent personal organizational skills. She can jungle many tasks at the same time.

She is accessible to other team members and is frequently

sought out for her opinion on how to improve in areas that are often not her responsibility. Whether designing a new label for a client, juggling the production schedule for eight lines or helping flip burgers at the company picnic, Monica is fully committed to helping make a difference in people's lives.

She is respected by her peers and admired by those who report to her. Monica is the perfect definition of an emerging leader in the food industry.

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RBS associate programming celebrated service members throughout July Retail Business Services, the services company of grocery retail group Ahold Delhaize USA, honored and celebrated veteran and active-duty associates and military families in July.

The month-long celebration was in partnership with Salute + Allies – the Retail Business Services internal business resource group. It is dedicated to the growth and advancement of active military associates and veterans through networking, career development and service opportunities. The company’s BRGs are an associate-led organization, and they all include “+ Allies.”

“It's really important to our organization to not only have people that are represented in that group, as veterans, but also those that are family members and friends of those that are in the military,” said Valencia Hill, diversity, equity and inclusion lead for RBS. “All of our groups are fantastic, but this group in particular, they make a huge impact to the community. They do a lot of community Valencia Hill service, a lot of donations to their community. And they also have really impacted our business quite a bit. They've proposed different opportunities for us to stand up new offerings within Retail Business Services. We're just really proud of this group.”

During July, the company offered several supportive and educational programs and events, including: • A 30-minute lunchtime walk session with veteran Ryan Vander Weit of Home Base, a national nonprofit dedicated to veterans of all eras, service members, military families and families of the fallen, who led a conversation on the four main barriers to reaching fitness goals.

• A lunch-and-learn program to benefit Semper Fi and America’s Fund.

• A keynote speaker session with Darren McBurnett, a retired U.S. Navy SEAL, combat veteran, professional photographer, author and motivational speaker. He discussed

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his military experience and promoted personal growth by sharing how to navigate adverse environments.

• The creation of a Wall of Honor on the RBS intranet to spotlight veteran and active-duty associates, recognizing their service and sharing their stories.

“My military background has served me well in my career,” said Gary Newell, a U.S. Navy veteran and a special projects and store development specialist at RBS. “Skills I learned in the Navy – team development, fostering morale and collaboration, working with diverse groups – has helped me succeed not only in my role at RBS, but also in my everyday life.”

Gary Newell Newell served four years on board the USS Belleau Wood (LHA-3). He was forward deployed to the Far East and based out of Sasebo, Japan. He participated in Run to Home Base in July as part of the Salute + Allies BRG. “With over 125,000 veterans who have lost their lives to suicide since 2001, what Home Base does to help got my attention instantly. I have the honor and privilege to be a part of something bigger than myself. This year I run in honor of Josh and Joey Smith, brothers of a colleague here at RBS.” Beth Sampson is chair of the Salute + Allies BRG. “I come from a military family, and the support from both RBS and our military-focused business resource group, Salute, is incredible.

Military associates and their family members are able to connect on their shared experiences, and our entire company is able to learn more about their fellow associates.”

In addition to the programming and events held in July, donations were made via RBS Cares, the charitable arm of Retail Business Services, to both Semper Fi and Home Base to further the support and care of military personnel and their families.

Hill said the Salute + Allies group had approached her department about designating a heritage month for veterans,

active-duty military and their families.

“They started thinking through what programming they wanted to bring forth for the organization for the month of July, so they prepared quite a bit. They proposed it to us. We not only agreed with all that they proposed for the month, but we also showed them how we can cross support some of the things that they're doing. And we're so proud of what they've put together.”

Hill said her department works with the BRGs to “remove barriers, to empower them, to source for them.”

When it comes to the heritage month observations, she said they always come up with some offering for all associates.

If the BRG creates something else as a bonus, the associates can enjoy that, too.

In addition to Salute + Allies, Retail Business Services also has: Balance + Allies (Caregivers Business Resource Group); Conexíon + Allies (Hispanic BRG); Elevate + Allies (Women’s BRG); Heritage + Allies (Native American BRG); Edge + Allies (Black BRG); Next + Allies (Generations BRG); Tradition + Allies (Asian/Pacific BRG); Pride + Allies (LGBTQIA BRG); and Thrive + Allies (Disabilities BRG).

Quincy, Massachusetts-based Retail Business Services provides services to five omnichannel grocery brands: Food Lion, Giant Food, The Giant Co., Hannaford and Stop & Shop.

Retail Business Services leverages the scale of the local brands to drive synergies and provides expertise, insights and analytics to local brands to support their strategies.

It does so through services that include Business Integrity Services (legal, risk management, quality assurance), Business Services (HR technology systems and process management), communications, omnichannel services, finance business services, financial planning and analysis, human resources, indirect sourcing, procurement, information technology, pharmacy services, store development, leasing, facilities support, and strategy and business development.

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AUGUST 2023 • THE SHELBY REPORT OF THE SOUTHWEST

Jeremy Vogler Schraad Sales & Marketing Chief Financial and Administrative Officer Jeremy Vogler has served in his current role since 2022. Since joining, Jeremy has elevated the critical support functions of Schraad, including finance, customer service and order to cash, technology and human resources.

He has prioritized implementing policies and programs that attract, retain and develop a diverse employee group while ensuring these company functions provide seamless support. This enables Schraad employees to stay focused on delivering value and driving sales for clients.

Tia Wines Buzz Balls LLC/ Southern Champion Brand Director Tia Wines has been with the company since 2014, just a few years after it was founded. She is the original member of the current marketing team and took it upon herself during the early years of the company to lead the design of its brands and

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One of his first big initiatives Jeremy led at Schraad was authoring the financial data model that enabled Schraad to deploy a new performance incentive program. The primary objective of the new program is to further align the focus areas and outcomes that embody success at the overall company level with successes at the individual level. It is a critical factor in elevating the company as a premier place to work, ensuring it can attract and retain critical new talent while experiencing unprecedented growth.

Another critical factor to attracting and retaining top talent has been driven by the human resources team, which innovated and implemented onboarding processes and performance management processes and tools that rival those of top organizations. Lastly, but just as importantly, he’s chartered a customer-centric focus for the organization’s central services team, ensuring they are enablers for new business growth.

Whether through Schraad’s best-inclass customer service team, creative and innovative solutions driven by the technology team or providing EMERGING critical support in revenue management and accounting, Jeremy’s team constantly innovates and improves to deliver the highest quality services.

They provide a true point of difference in the service delivery model.

In addition to being an innovative leader at Schraad, Jeremy is a dedicated leader to his community, embodying Schraad’s company values to give back. He currently serves as VP of the school board for Christian Heritage Academy in Del City, Oklahoma, and as the treasurer for his local church. He is also a member of the John T. Steed School of Accounting Board of Advisors at the University of Oklahoma

advertising campaigns. Tia has worn many marketing hats over the years, developing into marketing director for the organization.

She is responsible for creating brand blueprints and guidelines, overseeing brand development domestically and globally and crafting annual marketing strategies. Tia oversees the company’s national advertising campaigns, digital and social marketing and public relations, plus consumer affairs.

Under Tia’s leadership, key strategies were established and executed resulting in phenomenal growth for the company’s brands. BuzzBallz sales have grown 292 percent since 2019, and projections show 2023 will be yet another growth year with sales up another 55 percent.

In 2019, Tia led the development of Uptown Cocktails, another ready-to-drink cocktail brand. The brand was launched nationally in 2020 and quickly established itself as a top wine-based RTD cocktail brand. In 2021, Uptown Cocktails was awarded the prestigious Product of the Year award for the alcohol beverage category. The brand is the sixth largest wine RTD cocktail brand in the U.S. Tia Wines is an integral leader in the organization. Her leadership spans multiple departments, including sales, production and operations, that look to her for process efficiency concepts. Tia is a key reason for the organization’s success.

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THE SHELBY REPORT OF THE SOUTHWEST • AUGUST 2023

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NGA Student Case Study Competition leveraging emerging leaders

by Jim Dudlicek NGA director, communications and external affairs Employee recruitment and retention remains a top issue facing the independent retail industry. According to many industry and academic research studies, at least 58 percent of U.S. retailers said they have experienced hiring challenges over the past two years that have negatively impacted their business.

During this time, most of these retailers increased wages and benefits for full-time employees, yet they still saw a significant increase in their employee turnover rate.

Independent grocery retailers must assess how they should structure their financial plans and team activities to increase recruiting and retention. How can companies develop a comprehensive strategy that delivers the best combination of internal benefits with competitive corporate positioning?

As part of the NGA Student Case Study Competition in February, 11 colleges worked on strategies and tactics for marketing and implementation of this program. Auburn University emerged as champion.

The National Grocers Association and the NGA Foundation hosted a recent webinar to explain more about how this program can benefit independent grocery retailers.

Moderated by Kelly Hanson, the foundation’s senior project manager, the discussion included: Erica Campbell, director of talent management at St. Louis-based grocery retailer Dierbergs (the retailer at the center of this year’s case study contest); and Jarrett Prizel, a supply chain management student at Auburn University and a member of Auburn’s winning case study team.

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Here are some key takeaways from the discussion: The contest promotes industry leadership and innovative thinking. The competition provides college students considering careers in the grocery industry with hands-on, realworld experience, exposure to the independent grocery sector and a chance to develop solutions that can impact the industry, amid a spirit of fair competition and good sportsmanship.

After researching, developing and finalizing solutions presented during three rounds at the NGA Show, the winning school receives $4,000, with each student team member taking home $1,000.

Students were uniquely equipped to address this year’s topic. Grocers are seeking to enhance their employee recruitment and retention, and students are of the age group representing the industry’s emerging work force.

Teams could bring personal perspectives to these questions: What can grocery retail do to improve the connection points with employees of all ages and reduce turnover rates? How can grocers position themselves as a top potential employer for younger generations seeking fulfillment beyond financial in their career? How should independent grocers restructure their team to support employees’ needs during the hiring and training process? What are unique offerings independent grocers can offer both full-time and part-time employees that will encourage retention?

The contest offered students a reallife challenge. In Prizel’s case, his team brainstormed for about a month and created a network of professors to assist in developing his team’s skills in different business areas, including finance, supply chain management, entrepreneurship and consulting.

Students tackled how to fit solutions to case requirements

and company culture; structure teaching while allowing for worker autonomy; identify industry-leading strategies; and explain how their solution worked financially and strategically.

Auburn’s winning solution. The team impressed Dierbergs and contest judges with its three-phase plan that encompassed employee education, recognition, gamification of work processes, career coaching, employee retreats and networking groups.

Retailer takeaways from the contest? Dierbergs aims to focus on digital marketing to enhance its recruitment and culture; establish a mentoring program; increase its investment in scholarships, SAT/ACT prep courses and GED programs; and invest in learning and leadership development.

I’m a retailer and want to participate – what do I have to do? Dierbergs was asked to collect and provide data that would support the student’s research and solutions; coordinate with the NGA Foundation to answer student questions; and participate in the judging of the competition at the NGA Show.

In addition, Dierbergs sent a delegation of seven senior leaders to attend the NGA Show, sponsored a lunch for students at the show and hosted two of the competing teams, one to participate in a share group and another to spend a day with the management team in St. Louis.

Engagement opportunities for next year’s contest – a retailer partner, sponsorship partner, topic ideas and contest judges.

Online Learn more about the NGA Foundation’s student programs at www.nationalgrocers.org/ foundation/ student-case-study or contact nga-foundation@nationalgrocers.org.

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