Save A Lot hires Trey Johnson as chief merchant

Trey Johnson has joined discount grocery wholesaler/retailer Save A Lot as chief merchandising officer.

St. Louis-based Save A Lot said Wednesday that Johnson brings more than 30 years of experience in food and grocery merchandising, marketing, sales and supply chain with large operators such as Big Lots, Family Dollar, Kmart, Walmart, Supervalu and Albertsons. As chief merchant, he will oversee all areas of merchandising and quality assurance, as well as work to tighten relationships with retail partners and vendors.

At Save A Lot, which in February completed its transition from a retail to a wholesale business model, he will report directly to Leon Bergmann, who took the helm as CEO in March.

“I’m looking forward to supporting Save A Lot’s retail partners with an assortment that emphasizes great value and quality for consumers and delivers outstanding profitability to local owners and operators,” Johnson said in a statement. “Save A Lot’s commitment to remaining a hometown grocer while maintaining quality and value for families is one I’m excited to help build upon.”

Most recently, Johnson (left) served as executive vice president and chief merchandising, marketing and supply-chain officer at The Save Mart Cos. In that role, Save A Lot noted, he led various merchandising and supply-chain teams to implement programs and initiatives to make the Western grocer more attractive to customers, including new format development with Save Mart and Lucky innovation centers. He also directed merchandising strategy development for the Marketside format and brand for Walmart.

Related:Save A Lot operator wraps up tristate store remodel program

Johnson came to Save Mart from Big Lots Stores, where he was senior VP and general merchandise manager of food and consumables. Before that, his roles included senior VP of food at Family Dollar, VP and GMM of food and consumables at Sears/Kmart, chief merchandising officer at Walmart, corporate VP of grocery merchandising at Supervalu, and corporate VP of grocery and fuel merchandising at Albertsons. His more than eight years at Albertsons included merchandising leadership at the Acme Markets and Jewel Food Stores banners.

“With his strong track record of success in the grocery business, Trey brings a deep knowledge and understanding of the complex operations involved with merchandising strategies and tactical implementation,” Bergmann stated. “We’re excited for him to leverage that experience to ensure that Save A Lot’s assortment positions our rRetail partners to win consistently in their markets.”

Overall, Save A Lot operates 13 distribution centers and serves about 900 stores in 32 states.

Related:It’s official: Save A Lot is now a wholesaler