Dament Promoted to EVP at Supervalu
Anne Dament has been promoted to EVP for retail, marketing and private brands at Supervalu Inc.
Dament has made significant contributions to the Minneapolis-based grocery wholesaler and retailer, including developing a strong plan and implementation strategy to improve the company’s retail division, reorganizing multiple retail merchandise groups, consolidating wholesale and retail marketing efforts and driving new product introductions.
With respect to new products, she has brought new ideas and direction to Supervalu’s portfolio, including launching more than 350 new private label items this year, and developed other innovative solutions, such as Supervalu’s recent launch of its national Quick & Easy meal solution program.
“Anne is a smart, creative, and dynamic leader and has made a significant impact on our team in a short time frame,” said Mark Gross, Supervalu’s president and CEO. “Over the last year, she’s set a positive vision for our retail initiatives, particularly here in Minnesota, introduced exciting new product innovation to wholesale and retail, and brought greater collaboration between our retail and wholesale teams.”
A 2016 Progressive Grocer Top Woman in Grocery, Dament joined Supervalu last January as SVP of retail, merchandising and marketing after spending two years at Target Corp. as SVP of merchandising, responsible for food merchandising for the company’s grocery business, including perishables, non-perishables, food service and private label brands.
Dament’s career with Supervalu began as a buyer in the 1990s; she then spent the next two decades in roles with ConAgra Foods, Otis Spunkmeyer and Safeway. During her tenure at Safeway, she had roles of increasing responsibility, including numerous category director positions. Dament developed and implemented sales plans and strategic initiatives in key grocery growth areas, including perishables, general merchandise and online and home delivery.
In 2009, Dament joined PetSmart, responsible for the planning and execution of merchandising strategy, including assortments, space planning, price optimization, promotion and visual merchandising. In 2012 she became VP of services, accountable for the services business and customer reservation center, as well as managing all payroll and labor allocation for 1,300 stores and 15,000-plus employees.
Robertson Out as General Counsel
Karla Robertson has resigned from her position as Supervalu’s EVP, general counsel and corporate secretary, effective Nov. 17, to join Pentair plc.
“Karla is a highly respected leader who has been a tremendous asset to this company and to me personally,” Gross said. “She has been a great member of the executive team and contributor toward our growth and transformation. Not only has she provided excellent legal advice but she has also served an invaluable role as business partner and advisor to all of us. I thank Karla for her service to our company over the past eight years and wish her all the best.”
Stuart McFarland has been appointed SVP, general counsel and corporate secretary effective Nov. 18. McFarland has worked at Supervalu since 2010 in positions of increasing responsibility and currently serves as VP, associate general counsel and assistant corporate secretary, focusing on corporate transactions, mergers and acquisitions, securities and corporate governance. Prior to joining Supervalu, McFarland was an associate at the law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP in Los Angeles.
“Looking forward, we are very excited to have Stuart as our general counsel as we continue our transformation and focus on organic and new growth opportunities,” Gross said. “Stuart is an extremely intelligent, insightful, and hard-working leader who will hit the ground running with his knowledge of Supervalu and our industry.”
Supervalu Inc. is one of the largest grocery wholesalers and retailers in the United States, with annual sales of approximately $16 billion. It operates a network of 3,337 stores composed of 3,120 wholesale primary stores operated by customers serviced by its food distribution business and 217 traditional retail grocery stores operated under five retail banners in six geographic regions.