Klug Departure Triggers Albertsons Shakeup

MINNEAPOLIS — Supervalu on Monday said that Sue Klug would leave her post as president of Albertsons’ Southern California division later this month as part of a slate of leadership changes.

She will be succeeded at Albertsons by Dan Sanders, the current president of Supervalu’s Acme division in the Philadelphia area. Keith Wyche, president of Minneapolis-based Cub Foods, will replace Sanders at Acme, and Brian Audette is being promoted to take over Wyche’s role at Cub.

Klug had been Albertsons’ Southern California president since 2007. She was an executive with Albertsons before Supervalu acquired the company and also previously worked for Safeway.

“Sue has been a champion of diversity and environmental stewardship for the company, and has been honored within the industry and community for these efforts,” said Pete Van Helden, Supervalu’s executive vice president of retail operations. “We thank Sue for her years of service and leadership in Southern California and wish her well as she moves on to dedicate her talent and attention to long-time personal and professional ambitions.”

Sanders joined Acme in 2010 and led the division as it embarked on a large-scale effort to lower prices, improve sales and profitability, refocus customer service efforts and enhance shopper satisfaction. “Although there is work left to do, these efforts have helped set a firmer foundation for Acme as it competes in a rapidly changing and highly competitive marketplace,” the company said. Sanders came to Acme from United Supermarkets, Lubbock, Texas, where he was the chief executive officer for six years.

Wyche has improved sales trends and grown profitability at Cub Foods since joining the company in 2010. Wyche began his career in sales, marketing and management roles with AT&T and IBM. Prior to coming to Supervalu, he was president of U.S. operations for Pitney Bowes’ Pitney Management Services division. Before that, he held various sales leadership and general management positions with Convergys and Ameritech. He is on the corporate board of directors for WMS Industries.

Audette joined Supervalu in 1991, gaining more than 20 years of experience in positions of increasing responsibility within category management, marketing and merchandising. He was the group vice president of independent sales, marketing and merchandising within the supply chain organization before being named business transformation officer in 2010. Last year, he was promoted to group vice president of merchandising transformation and process improvement.

“Dan, Keith and Brian embody the entrepreneurial spirit that is at the core of our hyperlocal strategy,” Van Helden said. “Coupled with their combined experience in the industry and their working knowledge of Supervalu’s strategy and operations, I believe they are ideally suited for their new responsibilities.”