Big Y Appoints VPs of Fresh Foods and Center Store
The board of directors of New England-based Big Y Foods Inc. recently revealed two new appointments.
First, John P. Fraro has been appointed VP of fresh foods, in which role he will be responsible for all aspects of Big Y’s fresh departments, including meat, seafood, bakery, deli, kitchen, produce and floral.
Fraro started his career at Big Y in 2005 as an assistant foodservice/kitchen manager after having held roles in meat, bakery and deli for two other retailers. In 2006, he was appointed sous chef at Big Y’s Fresh Acres Market, and in 2008 he became its meal solutions manager. In 2009, Fraro was appointed junior deli buyer, followed by bakery sales manager. From 2014 to 2017, he was a deli then produce sales manager, until his 2017 appointment as director of deli, bakery and kitchen.
Fraro completed the National Grocers Association Executive Development Program, and last year he received the 2023 Emerging Leader Award from the Massachusetts Food Association. He and his partner, Michael, live in Somers, Conn.
Second, Steve Nordstrom has been appointed VP of center store, in which role he will be responsible for center store sales, marketing and merchandising programs for grocery, health and beauty care, general merchandise, frozen, and dairy as well as space management.
He joined Big Y in 1996 as an assistant grocery manager and later held other roles within the operations division, including store director, sales and merchandising mentor, and district director. In 2014, he moved to the sales and marketing department as a sales manager, and one year later he became director of frozen and dairy. By 2018, Nordstrom was director of health and wellness, including pharmacies, and in 2020, he was named director of center store, followed by senior director of center store in 2023. Nordstrom's grocery career spans 30 years.
Nordstrom holds a BA from Assumption College in Massachusetts. He and his wife, Meredith, have two children and live in Southbridge, Mass.
Both Fraro and Nordstrom report to Michael R. Cormier, SVP of sales and marketing.
According to Michael P. D’Amour, Big Y president and CEO: “Our people are and always will be the heart of our company. They foster and grow our culture of caring, continuous learning and service to each other and our communities. I am excited to have John and Steve join our vice president leadership team, as they will help us to challenge how we think, innovate and grow. The most important thing we do as a leadership group is to help educate and empower all our employees to have a voice and to be a part of a team that is committed to Big Y remaining a great place to work and shop for generations to come.”
Springfield, Mass.-based Big Y Foods is one of the largest independently owned supermarket chains in New England. It operates 84 locations throughout Massachusetts and Connecticut, encompassing 70 supermarkets, Table & Vine Fine Wines and Liquors, and 13 Big Y Express gas and convenience locations, with almost 12,000 employees. The company is No. 74 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2024 list of North America’s top retailers of food and consumables.
