HOWS Markets Owner Hughes Dies

ELLIOT ZWIEBACH

NORTHRIDGE, Calif. — Funeral services are scheduled here Tuesday for Roger K. Hughes, one of the owners of HOWS Markets and son of the founder of Hughes Markets.

Hughes, 76, died Thursday following a long battle with cancer. He is survived by his wife, Katharine; four children; nine grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

Roger Hughes joined Hughes Markets in 1973 as a store manager. He was serving as a vice president when his father, Joseph Hughes, died. Roger Hughes became chairman and chief executive officer of what ultimately became a 58-store operation.

The chain was acquired in 1996 by Quality Food Centers, Seattle, which kept the Hughes name on the stores; however, when QFC and Ralphs were acquired a year later by Fred Meyer Inc., Portland, Ore., the Hughes banner was replaced with the Ralphs name and Hughes retired.

In 1999 Hughes and three former executives — Mark Oerum, David Wolff and Steve Strickler — founded HOWS Markets, which currently operates four stores. Hughes also served as president of the Western Association of Food Chains in 1995, and he and his wife have donated scholarships to the association for the past several years.