Charles A Krasne, a pioneer in the grocery industry who presided over his family’s business Krasdale Foods for more than 50 years, died on March 7. He was 94.
Only the second CEO in the company’s 117-year history, Krasne transformed Krasdale Foods from a local wholesaler and distributor into a fully integrated grocery servicer and supplier, forming the company’s retail arm, which provided all manner of support to independent grocers, including advertising, marketing, merchandising and business services.
Under his leadership, Krasdale Foods became the largest voluntary supermarket group in the New York Metro Area via its banners C-Town, Bravo, Aim, Shop Smart and Stop 1, along with distributing to thousands of bodega and specialty stores. He also expanded the company’s footprint beyond its New York City roots. Today, Krasdale Foods serves independent grocery stores throughout the Northeast and Florida.
Krasne was born on September 12, 1930. After graduating from Yale and earning his MBA from Harvard, he worked briefly alongside his father at Krasdale Foods but soon left to take a position at IBM. It was there that Krasne recognized the critical role computers could play in developing efficiencies at every level of an organization.
When Krasne returned to Krasdale Foods in the 1960s, he instituted an operational data processing and inventory management system that made the company one of the most efficient food distributors in the country, able to quickly turn over inventory while maintaining a 97 percent service level or fill rate.
In 1973, Krasne arranged for Krasdale Foods to move from its small warehouse to the brand-new facility at the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center in the Bronx, becoming one of the first tenants recruited by the city to the new site.
Not long after, in the late 1970s, many large supermarket chains began moving out of New York, leaving a patchwork of small bodegas and grocery stores to fill the void. With the changed landscape, Krasne recognized an opportunity to help these small business owners pool their resources to provide enhanced merchandising, marketing and business support, in addition to wholesaling and distribution. Krasne unveiled the C-Town and Bravo banners while offering a wide-ranging business model that included providing financing and advising and arranging for services, including retail- technology, pricing, signage, etc.
Throughout his many years at the helm of Krasdale Foods, Krasne helped to empower hundreds of small business owners, many of whom were first-generation Americans who would go on to own multiple stores now run by their children and grandchildren. He also took pride in giving back to the communities where Krasdale operates, hosting beloved events and activities and partnering with organizations such as the Yankees Foundation, Food Bank for New York City, and DreamYard to support underserved communities.
Even in recent years, Krasne continued to evolve and expand the company. In 2002, after several longtime customers moved to Florida and inquired about opening new stores, he brought the Bravo banner to the Sunshine State.
As CEO, Krasne has been a strong mentor, helping to elevate future leaders. Throughout his tenure, he recruited some of the best and brightest talent in the grocery industry, including Krasdale’s president and COO Gus Lebiak. Under his leadership, Krasne built an exceptional leadership team poised to ensure success for Krasdale and its customers for the next hundred years.
Krasne is survived by his four children, Fred (and Melissa Daley), Kenneth (and his fiancé, Cynthia Ramos), Thatcher (and Stacie) Krasne, and Kim Bacon, and seven grandchildren, Tess, Keira, Lily, Chloe, and Hudson Krasne, and Jeremy and Oliver Bacon. In addition, he is survived by his sister, Belle Ribicoff, and nieces Karen Wagner (and Dr. Jason Faller), Jane Wagner, and Dara Ribicoff. He was predeceased by his wife of more than 60 years, Ines Tamara Krasne, in 2018. He is also survived by his companion, Maria Velazquez.
Those wishing to honor Krasne’s legacy are asked to make a donation in his memory to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center.
Carol Rabb Goldberg, former president of Stop & Shop, has passed away at age 93. For more than 71 years, she was the beloved wife of the late Avram Goldberg who died in 2022, The company was founded by her grandfather (Joseph Rabinovitz) and father (Sidney Rabb).
Shortly after graduating from Tufts University, she joined the family business, which opened its first store (as Economy Grocery Stores) in Somerville, MA in 1914. During her 30-year career at New England’s largest supermarket chain, she held many positions including VP-marketing, senior VP, executive VP, and president and COO.
When the company was acquired by private equity firm KKR in 1989, Carol and Avram Goldberg founded the AVCAR Group, a private investment and consulting firm.
Carol Goldberg was active on community and philanthropic boards including the United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley; advocates for Tufts University’s Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service; and a member of the boards of the Women’s Studies Research Center of Brandeis University. She was also a founding member of The Commonwealth Institute; a trustee for life of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; and had been a member of the boards of Combined Jewish Philanthropies and Hebrew College.
She was the devoted mother of two children – Massachusetts State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg and her husband Michael Winter; and Joshua R. Goldberg and his life partner, Sarah Key; grandchildren Evan L.G. Winter, Meredith S.G. Winter, Audrey Winter-Driben (Bruce), and Elissa Winter Owen (Mark); great grandchildren Jacob Owen, Samantha Owen, and Zachary Driben.
Funeral services were private; a memorial celebration of her life will be scheduled for later in the spring.
