Haggen Bulks up Leadership Team
Haggen has hired four new executives and promoted one employee to its senior staff in an effort to help manage the emerging opportunities the company has found since the Northwest Fresh brand launched at its Bellevue, Wash. store November 2011.
New hires include John Turley as SVP of operations; Guy DiPasqua as VP of pharmacy; Ronette Snyder as VP of marketing; and Renee Glondo as the director of Bakery. Clement Stevens was promoted to SVP of sales and merchandising.
The additions come following Haggen’s successful launch of its Northwest Fresh initiative built upon the brand pillars of community, homemade and delight. Combined, these new staff members bring over 130 years of retail experience to their respective positions and departments and will help strengthen the company’s ability to meet the needs of customers as Northwest Fresh expands throughout Haggen’s 28-store network.
“We welcome these new additions to the Haggen family,” said C.J. Gabriel, Jr. (Gabe), president and CEO of Haggen. “Each one brings unique experience and talent to the table and will be instrumental in continuing our mission to bring the best in quality and service to our customers as we grow excitement for Northwest Fresh.”
DiPasqua comes to the company with more than 34 years in pharmacy operations in a leadership role. He’s worked as a lead for Savon and Osco Pharmacy operations, as well as the Target Corporation where he was responsible for pharmacies in 64 stores. Originally from Columbus, Ohio, DiPasqua graduated from the Ohio State University College of Pharmacy.
Glondo will be instrumental in expanding the Northwest Fresh brand into Haggen’s bakery departments. Glondo worked for QFC for 12 years where, she became director of bakery and helped launch QFC’s local bakery/deli program. Prior to that, she worked for a wholesale bakery that produced and delivered fresh baked goods to 230 customers daily. Her enthusiasm and creativity will take the bakery program to the next level. She is a Washington native and personally understands the tastes and passions of our region.
As the new VP of marketing, Snyder will facilitate marketing efforts for the Northwest Fresh brand across advertising, marketing and merchandising, assisting Haggen to pioneer emerging trends in social and online media. Prior to Haggen, Snyder spent nine years at The Campbell Soup Company, and prior to that spent seven years at Seattle’s Best Coffee where she shaped the company’s early positioning and branding efforts. A Washington state native, Snyder has a degree in communications from the University of Washington and an MBA in marketing from Seattle University.
Stevens has been with Haggen for two years. Prior to Haggen, he ran his own retail consulting company in Boise, Idaho focused on product development among the Fresh Foods vendor community. Before this, he spent 30 years with Albertson’s where he held various positions ranging from store operations to category manager to group VP of foods where he successfully executed a “Focus on Fresh” strategy across 1,600 stores nationwide. Stevens is originally from Louisiana and attended Louisiana State University.
Turley brings over 40 years of experience in grocery retail, including marketing, merchandising, and operations. He’s held various positions at Vons Grocery and Kroger Co., as well as Quality Food Centers (QFC) where he was responsible for the operations, merchandising and marketing strategy for 95 stores in the Pacific Northwest. Turley is originally from Whittier, Calif. and attended Fullerton College.
Bellingham, Wash.-based Haggen, Inc. operates 28 supermarkets in Washington and Oregon under the Haggen Food & Pharmacy and TOP Food & Drug names.