Jim Bartkowiak, the talented and personable dairy, frozen and ethnic category director at Shoppers Food, passed away on November 29 in Baltimore at the age of 75.
Beginning his career at A&P, Bartkowiak was a fixture in the Baltimore-Washington retail food trade for 51 years. He spent the last 37 years of his career at Shoppers where he helped build the modern foundation of that regional chain’s dairy and frozen departments.
While at Shoppers, Bartkowiak was known to be a student of the dairy-related commodities market, keenly focusing on lowering the cost of goods. In frozen, he prioritized variety and selection and prided himself on Shoppers having the largest ice cream assortment in the market.
When the ethnic category began to grow, Bartkowiak saw a real opportunity with Shoppers’ diverse customer base and worked hard to expand the department’s variety, helping the ethnic department become one of the cornerstones of Shoppers’ total business.
Jim Bartkowiak was raised in the Highlandtown section of Baltimore and later served his country in Vietnam. He was a big fan of both the Orioles and Ravens and was extremely dedicated to his family, attending many of his children’s activities as they grew up.
He leaves behind his wife Vera (nee Galford), children Angela J. Bergamy and her husband Don, Valerie J. Gaigler and her husband Charles, James R. Bartkowiak Jr. and his wife Katie,; Michael P. Bartkowiak and Kevin C. Bartkowiak; grandchildren Donnie Bergamy, Terra Cymek, Kera and Brooke Gaigler, James R. Bartkowiak III; great grandchildren Josephine Bergamy; sister Beverly Parrog and her husband Lou; as well as other loving relatives and friends.