Robert Bly Takes Helm at Shoppers

Supervalu Inc. has pegged Robert Bly as the new president of its Shoppers Food & Pharmacy division in the Baltimore/Washington, D.C., market.

Expected to begin his new role at Shoppers this week, Bly will report to Chuck Elias, Supervalu’s senior VP of retail operations. Bly replaces Tim Lowe, who recently accepted a new leadership role in Supervalu’s merchandising organization.

“His knowledge of grocery operations and improving company performance through proven business acumen will lead Shoppers to improving the bottom line while maintaining our customer experience,” Elias said of Bly.

Bly, 49, was most recently a vice president of the Kmart and Sears divisions of Sears Holdings Co. Tapped for his “significant experience in … turning around underperforming retail operations,” Bly worked on efforts to improve sales and profits while increasing productivity and efficiency. Prior to Sears, Bly held positions with convenience store chain Road Ranger and spent 22 years with Michigan-based superstore chain Meijer Inc., where he held executive and store-level positions and implemented strategic plans to improve sales, inventory management and operational execution.

Shoppers Food & Pharmacy operates 56 stores in Baltimore, northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. It’s part of Minneapolis-based Supervalu Inc., which operates 4,400 stores and distributes to independent grocers across the country.