IGA Promotes Heidi Huff to Marketing Director
The Independent Grocers Alliance (IGA) has promoted Heidi Huff, former manager of marketing and retail programs, to director of marketing for the association, effective immediately. Huff will continue to report to Jim Walz, IGA USA VP of brand development.
“Heidi has done an outstanding job of creating a ‘community-focused’ marketing program that is a foundation piece for IGA retailers, providing them the tools to better create a point of difference in the communities they serve,” said IGA SVP Doug Fritsch. “The enthusiasm Heidi brings in support of independent retailers and her passion for the IGA Brand is well known, and we look forward to having her apply her many talents toward building an even better and more useful IGA marketing program for all members.”
Huff, who has been with IGA since 2008, will continue to have primary responsibility for IGA’s marketing event programs, as well as intimate involvement in other marketing and retail initiatives, including at this time, the IGA Assessment Program related to retail and branding standards, and the IGALink digital marketing platform, which provides all IGA retailers with their own IGA-branded website, mobile website and shopper marketing tools. Huff will also take an expanded role in her involvement with IGA’s Red Oval Family of premier CPG companies and service providers, working directly with Walz and Red Oval Family partners to create new ways to connect with IGA’s independent retailers and their shoppers.
Huff has held several marketing and branding management positions throughout her career. Before coming to IGA, she worked for Building Leaders, a Chicago-based sales training company, where she implemented marketing and branding activities, and also managed the overall delivery of programs and services, including eCommerce, sales/marketing, and event coordination. Prior to her tenure with Building Leaders, Huff was a business development consultant working with independent businesses to develop marketing and promotional programs, sales training, and all related communication tools. She also brings operational and sales development experience from Corner Bakery Café.
The IGA is the world’s largest voluntary supermarket network with aggregate worldwide retail sales of more than $31 billion per year. The Alliance includes more than 5,000 Hometown Proud Supermarkets worldwide, supported by 36 distribution companies and more than 50 major manufacturers, vendors and suppliers known as IGA’s Red Oval Family partners. IGA has operations in 46 of the United States and more than 30 countries, commonwealths and territories.