Alston to succeed Brookshire Brothers' Johnson

Brookshire Brothers said Monday that COO John Alston will succeed Jerry Johnson as president and CEO at the end of April.

Johnson has served as CEO of the Lufkin, Texas-based retailer since 2007. He will continue to serve on Brookshire’s board of directors.

Alston (pictured) is a 35-year veteran of Brookshire Brothers. He has served as a store director, district director, COO and member of its board of directors.

“John has the leadership ability and experience to lead our company through the challenges ahead and has the confidence of both the Board and Brookshire Brothers’ employee-owners,” Johnson said in a statement.

Under Johnson’s leadership, Brookshire Brothers grew from 69 supermarkets throughout East Texas and western Louisiana to its current 114 stores, and from a family-owned company with 5,700 employees to becoming employee-owned with nearly 7,000 employee-owners. 

“Jerry’s legacy as a great leader is firmly embedded in the hearts and minds of our Brookshire Brothers’ family,” Alston said. “From transitioning the company from private family ownership to an ESOP, Jerry has worked tirelessly as an advocate for our employee-owners.”

Johnson joined the company’s board in 1997. He was a member of the team that assisted the company in becoming a majority employee-owned company in 1999 and began as the company’s chief administrative officer at that time. Johnson served as chairman of the board from 2003 through 2007 at which time he assumed his current role of president and CEO with Milton Hixson becoming the chairman of the management board.