C&S Wholesale Grocers announced late last month that it has appointed Mike Duffy as chief executive officer, effective January 8, 2018. In this capacity, Duffy will assume leadership responsibility for C&S’s strategic development, customer satisfaction, and day-to-day operations.
The company said the appointment will allow Rick Cohen, C&S’s current CEO, to focus on his role of executive chairman of the board, leading the organization’s growth and innovation strategy.
“I have full confidence in Mike’s ability to lead C&S’s continued journey as the leading supply chain company in the food industry,” Cohen said. “He brings with him world class leadership and commercial skills and is an experienced operator with supply chain capabilities in procurement, warehouse management, logistics, and distribution. I look forward to working closely with him, as we continue to provide exceptional service to our customers and valuable career opportunities to our employees.”
Duffy has spent more than 20 years building expertise through his work with Cardinal Health, the Gillette Company, and P&G (following its acquisition of Gillette). He has most recently been serving as president of Global Manufacturing and Supply Chain at Cardinal Health. Duffy earned both a bachelor’s degree in operations research and a master’s degree in transportation from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He currently serves on the board of trustees for the Columbus Metropolitan Library, has previously been on the board of the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals, and served as president of the corporate advisory council at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business (master of supply chain management program).
“I am honored to be joining the C&S team to continue and to build upon the impressive legacy of this organization,” Duffy said. “As I have gotten to know Rick and the leadership team, I understand the significant strengths that C&S offers to the industry, and I am excited to partner with the entire organization in driving the future success of the company.”
Duffy’s appointment marks the second time in less than four years that Rick Cohen has brought in a senior executive to lead the company on a day-to-day basis.
Former Bain & Company managing director Mark Verdi joined C&S in March 2014 as president. At the time, Cohen, said that Verdi “has a proven track record of strengthening teams and improving operations at large, fast-growing companies, and global brands. [I] am confident he will take our strategic execution and day-to-day operations to a new level as we continue to accelerate our growth, deliver exceptional service and value to our customers, and create rewarding career opportunities for our employees.”
Verdi lasted in the job 10 months.
As the third generation leader of what is now the largest wholesale grocer in the U.S., Cohen clearly wants to use his vast skills to develop and implement new ideas and strategies for the Keene, NH-based privately held distributor, whose annual sales are estimated to be about $27 billion annually.