FMI Reveals 2018 Store Manager Award Honorees

Food Marketing Institute (FMI) has recognized four store managers for their leadership and career achievements at its Future Leaders eXperience event in Louisville, Ky.

 “In a world increasingly enamored with technology, it becomes a point of differentiation to have quality, meaningful connections with people,” noted Leslie G. Sarasin, president and CEO of Arlington, Va.-based FMI. “Store managers make that point of differentiation a flesh-and-blood reality. They are motivating their employees to create memorable in-store and online experiences that keep shoppers personally engaged and coming back for more.”

The 19^th annual Store Manager Award winners are as follows:

• Category A: (1-49 stores): Al Gartner, Lunds & Byerlys, Woodbury, Minn.
• Category B (50-199 stores): Kathy Sweigert, Giant/Martin’s, State College, Pa.
• Category C (200-plus stores): Pam Hudson, Dillons Food Stores, a division of The Kroger Co., Hutchinson, Kan.
• Category D (International): Joanne Walker, SPAR Northern Ireland/Henderson Group, Co. Down, Northern Ireland

Additionally, for the fourth year, FMI hosted the “People’s Pick” Facebook contest, which this year garnered more than 8,800 votes. The 2018 Store Manager People’s Pick was Mitch Cochran, of Food City in Cleveland, Tenn.

Each Store Manager Award winner receives a $1,000-prize and a crystal sculpture, while the “People’s Pick” contest winner gets a special trophy and $500 to celebrate his or her store’s employees.