Acme president Jim Perkins will remain as the leader of the 110-store Malvern, PA-based chain; Steve Burnham has been named new president of Safeway’s Eastern division and Jim Rice will continue as president of Shaw’s Supermarkets (Star Markets) in New England. Those are some of the important personnel announcements concerning the new Albertsons’ (AB Acquisition LLC/New Albertsons Inc.) leadership team in the Northeast. Additionally, Justin Dye has been named executive VP and chief operating officer and will oversee the retailer’s East Coast business (which also includes Jewel-Osco). The changes become official when AB Acquisition’s pending purchase of Safeway Stores is given federal government approval, which is expected before the end of 2014.
Jim Perkins has been president of Acme Markets since March 2013 and began his career at Albertsons in 1982 as a courtesy clerk. Prior to being named president of Acme, he was a regional VP for Giant/Landover.
Burnham is currently VP-retail marketing execution for Vons, the Southern California division of Safeway. Prior to this role, he served as senior VP-produce, floral and bakery at Safeway’s corporate headquarters in Pleasanton, CA. He previously held the position of VP-produce since 2008. Burnham joined Safeway in 1989 and worked his way through the company’s meat unit at the store, district, division and national levels, eventually being appointed group director for the company’s corporate meat business unit in 2003. In 2007, he left the meat and seafood world and was appointed vice president of marketing planning. He takes over from Brian Baer, who took the helm at the Lanham, MD division last December, replacing Steve Neibergall who had led the division since 2007.
Rice has more than three decades of experience in grocery retail, starting with Albertsons in California as a part time-associate and working his way up to store director.  He served as district manager in both Florida and Las Vegas prior to being named Northern California division VP from 1995 until 1999.  He was then named Southwest division president, a position he held until 2005 when he left the company to pursue other opportunities. Rice joined Albertson’s Jewel-Osco division in August 2013. In January 2014, he was named interim division president of Jewel-Osco. He was named the Shaw’s & Star Market president in March of 2014.
Dye will now have oversight for Safeway (eastern division), Acme, Shaw’s and Jewel-Osco. He is a former member of the Cerberus operations team and joined Albertsons LLC in 2006. In 2013, he became chief operating officer of New Albertsons Inc. (NAI).
Corporately, veteran Albertsons executive Shane Sampson, who also worked for Giant/Landover as senior VP-sales and operations, has been promoted to EVP-merchandising and marketing for the revamped organization. Sampson began his career at Albertsons in Texas as a front-end clerk. He left the company in 2002 and returned in 2013 to become president of Shaw’s. Earlier this year he was named president of Jewel-Osco.
Current Safeway president and CEO Robert Edwards will serve as the combined company’s president and CEO. The senior leadership team will consist of: Bob Gordon, EVP and general counsel; Andy Scoggin, EVP-human resources, labor relations, public affairs and government affairs; Jerry Tidwell, EVP-supply chain and manufacturing; Lee Wilson, EVP and chief administrative officer; Bob Dimond, EVP and chief financial officer; Justin Ewing, EVP-corporate development and real estate; and Barry Libenson, interim EVP and chief information officer.
In addition to Dye, Wayne Denningham has been named EVP and COO of the South region and Safeway veteran Kelly Griffith becomes EVP and COO of the North region.
Dimond, Ewing and Libenson will all report to Wilson. Libenson is expected to be with the new company through March 2015, at which time a successor will be named.
“We’re drawing on the strong talent within both companies to build an innovative, customer-focused and growth-driven company,” said Edwards. “We are confident in this team’s ability to build a great company that’s positioned to win over the long term by earning the loyalty of grocery shoppers in every market we serve and delivering superior operational and financial results.”
The new company will be comprised of three regions and 14 retail divisions. The company will keep the focus and financial responsibility at the division level, but take full advantage of the expertise, vision and core capabilities of the corporate team. The 14 divisions will be supported by corporate offices in Boise, ID, Pleasanton, CA, and Phoenix, AZ.
The division presidents for the new company will report to the chief operating officer for their respective regions.
In the East region, in addition to Perkins, Burnham and Rice, Mike Withers will serve as president of the Jewel-Osco division.
Division presidents for the South region will be: Shane Dorcheus, Southwest division; Scott Hayes, Southern division; Sidney Hopper, Houston division; Lori Raya, Southern California division; and Robert Taylor, United division.
Division presidents for the North region will be: Dennis Bassler, Portland division; Paul McTavish, Denver division; Susan Morris, Intermountain division; Tom Schwilke, Northern California division; and Dan Valenzuela, Seattle division.
No banner changes are planned.
“We know the best way to grow our business is to have the highest quality fresh departments, lower prices, clean, well-stocked stores and the best customer service in the market,” said Bob Miller, Albertsons current CEO, who will become executive chairman of the combined company upon completion of the transaction. “Our teams will focus on delivering what customers want locally, and we will give our store teams more flexibility to make decisions that are right for their neighborhoods. The division teams will have the responsibility to have the right assortment for their markets.”
Safeway shareholders approved the proposed merger agreement on July 25, under which AB Acquisition LLC, an affiliate of Albertsons, will acquire all outstanding shares of Safeway. The transaction is currently under review by the Federal Trade Commission.
