Experience

Trader Joe's

• United States
• Retail
• 700 & Above Employee

• Mate (Assistant Store Leader)

  • Jan 2023 - Present



Earth Fare

• United States
• Food and Beverage Services
• 400 - 500 Employee

• Store Team Leader

  • Jul 2020 - Apr 2021

  - Built new store team including leaders, hiring all team members, training & supporting regional teams. - Created category layout & POG's for Grocery, Dairy, Frozen, and bulk categories. - Supported fresh teams with buying, merchandising, preparing, & food safety training. - Developed / Implemented SOP's for all store teams and regional SOP for full store inventories. - Led store team to sales ranking in TOP 3 overall sales. - Developed sales plans for Fresh Department teams which took them to being Top performers in company categories. - Created cross functional merchandising plan for store teams to help drive sales and reduce known loss.



Target

• United States
• Retail
• 700 & Above Employee

• Regional Coordinator Meat/Seafood/Dairy/Frozen

  • Nov 2018 - Jun 2020

   Executed food operations strategy in assigned stores.  Partnered with field & store leadership, Store Operations, Merchandising, and other stakeholder groups to champion projects to grow profitable food sales.  Leveraged reporting to evaluate performance in sales, markdown, inventory productivity, food safety, and KPI measures.  Maintained industry knowledge and market trends by benchmarking competitor pricing, promotions, merchandising practices, and processes.  Supported teams to profitable sales by assisting stores with guest-centric scheduling and training.



MINA Group

• United States
• Hospitality
• 100 - 200 Employee

• GM of Operations Locale Market

  • May 2018 - Nov 2018

  Responsible for increasing the store's efficiency / level of retail execution, improve customer service and overall product offerings in all areas of store operations. Develop, mentor, motivate all department teams and develop/implement the proper training tools to reduce team member turnover and work with the store teams to create solid team member career growth with a great team foundation. Work with store teams to develop/implement efficient strategies/processes to increase the profit and overall financial growth of the store while working in tandem with company accounting department, human resource department, marketing, facilities, along with sourcing / developing relationships outside vendors.



Gordon Food Service

• United States
• Food and Beverage Services
• 700 & Above Employee

• Southern Divisional Merchandiser

  • Feb 2017 - Sep 2017

  • Planned & managed store remodels for entire store resets to improve KPI’s / store profitability. • Developed / Implemented standard operations procedures, POG shelf standards & merchandising practices. • Improved margin and shrink performance in all areas of store operations. • Maintained quality standards by training and educating store teams on safe food handling practices / standards. • Provided store assessment reports and recommendations to operational leadership for store-needed improvements. • Created, developed and implemented training programs for store teams in all areas of store operations. **GFS eliminated all three Divisional Merchandiser positions after creating these positions in Feb. 2017**



Whole Foods Market

• United States
• Retail
• 700 & Above Employee

• Retail Team Leader

  • Apr 2008 - Mar 2017

  • Benched marked competition /analyzed customer trends / studied store demographics to develop strategies. • Developed & implemented strategic operational plans with all store teams to improve store KPI’s. • Increased department Grocery department sales from $80K weekly to an average of $200K per week. • Improved perishable teams KPI’s, including overall GM%, team productivity, and reduced spoilage. • Increased store sales from $280,000 per week to $620,000 per week. • Hired, trained, and mentored store teams, creating a cohesive and customer-centric team. Developed & supported the growth of team members career advancements into leadership roles. • Sourced & established partnerships with local vendors to create unique product mixes that supported the area community / featured Florida vendor products / producers. • Developed & implemented merchandising / operational process & strategies that set standards • Created sales plan, led & opened new stores openings & store resets in the FL Region. • Maintained highest percent for store sales for grocery category at 40% of total store sales dollars.



Anheuser-Busch

• United States
• Food and Beverage Services
• 700 & Above Employee

• Public Relations Operations Manager

  • May 2006 - May 2008

  • Developed & implemented retail program initiatives • Improved daily standards of operations that improved guest experiences. • Worked with, handled and cared for the World Famous Budweiser Clydesdales. • Educated visitors with hands on encounters / engaging presentations about the Clydesdales group settings. • Selected to be the handler / public speaker at large functions & special private group settings. • Created a memorable, interactive experience for guests that regularly exceeded guest expectations.



Publix Super Markets

• United States
• Retail
• 700 & Above Employee

• Corporate Retail Operations Improvement Specialist

  • Aug 2000 - Nov 2004

  • Developed & managed collaborative effort to create / launch the well-regarded Apron’s program, including in-store cooking demonstrations, cooking schools, and the “Simple Meals” program promoting home cooking. • Created cross-functional teams with external vendors/manufacturers to develop department design & equipment.• Developed, documented & implemented all of the programs operational standards and processes.• Collaborated with project teams to develop engaging presentations for new program launches.• Established and ensured adherence to customer service, merchandising and product quality standards. • Collaborated with teams to write and prepare training manuals, disaster plans, and food safety plans; created documentation for department assessments. • Spearheaded the launch of upscale housewares program; products generated $350K in incremental weekly sales Instrumental in the vendor and product selection processes as well as new merchandising standards.• Increased department productivity by providing associates with the tools to do their job and by cultivating strong morale and team cooperation.• Designed & effectively delivered training programs for groups of up to 200 across the entire company.

• Seafood Category Operations Development Manager

  • Aug 1994 - Aug 2000

  • Promoted from clerk to position of R&D Category Operations Specialist after 7 months of employment, tasked with researching and developing seafood program.• Transformed seafood operations from a history of unprofitability into a highly profitable product segment, through effective research, vendor selection, purchasing, merchandising, and analysis.• Post program implementation, department improved from $19M annual loss on $92M in sales to sales of $250M and a net profit of $8M. • Built cross-functional team from marketing, facilities, industrial engineers and accounts areas. • Conducted competitive and industry trends research, developing new products and programs. • Sourced & developed partnerships with vendors on new products for company exclusives. • Presented strategies, updates, new initiatives and results to CEO, President, and Vice Presidents.• Implemented effective pricing function. In the process, detected and eliminated vendor fraud following the completion of USCD standard quality inspections.• Designed & effectively delivered training programs for groups of up to 200 across the entire company