The Independent Grocers Alliance marked its 100th anniversary by recognizing leading independent retailers and industry executives from the U.S. and abroad during its Centennial Global Rally and Awards Gala in Atlanta.
The Sept. 19 event at the Georgia Aquarium capped IGA’s multi-day centennial gathering and included the naming of nine U.S. Retailers of the Year, international honorees and recipients of several of the organization’s top awards.
Mack McLamb of Carlie C’s IGA in Louisburg, N.C., received the evening’s top U.S. retail honor, being named the 2026 IGA USA International Retailer of the Year. McLamb was among nine operators selected from IGA’s network of approximately 3,600 U.S. retailers.
Other U.S. Retailers of the Year included Russ and Stephanie Burkholder of Burkholder’s Country Market in Spring Mills, Pa.; Ricky Dow of KJ’s Market in Lake City, S.C.; Kevin and Nicholas Bohman of Pride Family Market in Hanover, Ind.; Kelly Gutzwiller and Daren Wood of Versailles, Ind.; Matt Ladnier of Piggly Wiggly in Wiggins, Miss.; Brian McGregor of Archie’s IGA in St. Mary’s, Idaho; Jennifer and Tim Bosma of Harvest Market IGA in Fort Bragg, Calif.; and Jacob and Jason Linnes of Orcas Island Market in Eastsound, Wash.
Each retailer also received a specialty award recognizing areas including leadership, team building, community involvement, sustainability and merchandising.
Centennial Honors Independent Grocery Leaders
IGA presented its highest honor, the J. Frank Grimes Award, to two recipients for the first time: Bozzuto’s Inc. Chairman, President and CEO Michael Bozzuto and longtime IGA executive Dr. Paulo Goelzer.
Bozzuto’s family-owned wholesale company joined IGA in 1970. Bozzuto took over the business in 1994 and later founded the Dream Ride Experience, which raises money for Special Olympics. His father received the J. Frank Grimes Award in 1992, making them the first father and son to receive the honor.
Goelzer joined IGA in 1994 and founded the IGA Coca-Cola Institute in 2004. The training organization has since worked with more than 10,000 retail businesses worldwide. Goelzer stepped down as the institute’s president earlier this year and continues to serve in an emeritus role.
IGA also presented its Thomas S. Haggai Spirit of IGA Award to Fred Harrison, who rose from a stockroom position at age 16 to become CEO of Australian independent supermarket operator Ritchies. The company operates more than 90 stores and reports annual turnover of approximately $1.5 billion.
International Retailer of the Year honorees represented Canada, Grenada, the Philippines, South Africa, Ireland and Australia. IGA also recognized Jad Pereira, CEO of Unitrade Management Services, with an honorary International Retailer of the Year jacket for his work rebuilding the IGA network in South Africa.
AppCard was named Red Oval Service Provider of the Year, while The Clorox Company received the Red Oval CPG of the Year award.
The gala followed a Sept. 18 business session at Coca-Cola headquarters focused on the future of independent grocery. Speakers and panelists addressed changing consumer behavior, food security, sustainability and strategies independent operators can use to compete against larger retail organizations.
Founded in 1926 as a way for independent grocers to compete with expanding grocery chains, IGA now includes more than 7,500 stores in 46 states and more than 25 countries. The alliance said its members generate more than $43 billion in aggregate annual retail sales.
The centennial comes as independent grocers continue to confront many of the same competitive pressures that led to IGA’s formation a century ago — only now with scale extending beyond purchasing and distribution into technology, data, digital commerce and consumer loyalty. For IGA, the Atlanta gathering served both as a celebration of that history and a reminder that maintaining the competitiveness of independent operators remains the alliance’s central mission.