Longtime Exec With Cingari Family ShopRites Dies at 78

Salvatore “Chip” Cingari, a longtime executive with Cingari Family ShopRites, has died at age 78. According to his obituary, Cingari, a lifelong Stamford, Conn., resident, passed away peacefully on May 22, with his family by his side. 

Cingari began his career in the grocery business, working for his grandfather Salvatore Sr., sweeping floors, separating and cleaning bottles, and stocking shelves in the family's first store, located in the Shippan section of Stamford. Drafted into the U.S. Army in 1966, Cingari served in Germany, with the 3rd Missile Battalion, Nike Missile Hercules Unit, achieving the rank of Specialist 5, with Top Secret clearance. Honorably discharged in 1968, Cingari rejoined the family business and, in 1969, married his high school sweetheart, Nancy Halam. He managed the nonperishable side of the grocery business, which has grown to include 12 stores across Connecticut, which make up the Cingari Family ShopRites. In 1991, the Cingari family’s stores became members of the retailer cooperative Wakefern Food Corp.

Progressive Grocer honored Cingari Family ShopRite with its inaugural GroceryTech Innovation award for its “unique sustainability program for managing food waste that’s serving as a tech model for the grocery industry,” as noted by Editorial Director and Associate Publisher Gina Acosta, who presented the award last year. 

Cingari was also known for making the world a better place, volunteering and helping others. For instance, he was a member of the board of directors for the Connecticut Food Association (CFA) for more than 30 years and was selected as the first inductee in the CFA Hall of Fame. 

A funeral service was held for Cingari on May 28 in Stamford. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations be made in his memory to The Tunnel to Towers Foundation at www.t2t.org/donate.