Nielsen to Retire as Jewel-Osco Chief
Keith Nielsen, president of Jewel-Osco, Supervalu’s Chicago-area supermarket chain, will retire at the end of the current fiscal year on Feb. 28.
Nielsen’s successor will be Brian Huff, Supervalu senior vice president of specialty retail, who will transition into the position beginning Feb. 7.
“I am very proud of the work we’ve accomplished at Jewel-Osco during my tenure as president, but I’m looking forward to retiring and spending more time with my family,” said Nielsen, who started with the chain more than 40 years ago as a grocery clerk. “I will miss working with the many wonderful associates at Jewel-Osco and wish the team the very best as they continue to grow the business.”
Serving as president of Jewel-Osco since 2007, Nielsen has served as VP of operations for each of the chain’s geographic divisions, VP of service operations, manager of transportation services and grocery merchandising manager.
“I appreciate the years of service Keith has provided Jewel-Osco and wish him the best as he begins this new chapter in his life,” said Pete Van Helden, Supervalu executive VP of retail operations. “Keith has accomplished a number of key successes during his tenure. By building on these achievements, I know Brian will lead the team at Jewel-Osco to continued success.”
Huff joined Supervalu in 2003 as VP of merchandising at Cub Foods. In 2005, he was named Cub’s president, leading the division to its highest ever sales and market share. Since 2009, he has served as Supervalu’s senior VP of specialty retail. Prior to joining Supervalu, Huff served as VP of merchandising at Walmart and has also held positions at Price Chopper, Bruno’s and Metro Food Markets.
Jewel-Osco operates more than 180 stores in Illinois, Iowa and Indiana. Minneapolis-based Supervalu Inc. operates 4,270 stores composed of approximately 1,140 traditional retail stores, including 816 in-store pharmacies; 1,240 hard-discount stores, of which 890 are operated by licensee owners; and 1,890 independent stores serviced primarily by the company’s traditional food distribution business.