Kroger Delta Division President to Retire

The Kroger Co.'s Delta division president, Scot Hendricks, has announced his retirement, and Victor Smith, current VP of merchandising for the Ralphs division, will step into his role. 

Hendricks has been with Kroger for 38 years, spending the past three years leading the Delta division. Smith will work closely with Hendricks until he transitions into his new role on Feb. 3. 

Mike Donnelly, Kroger's EVP and COO, said Hendricks' "genuine love and passion for the retail business and for his Delta family is illustrated in his interactions with everyone he meets." 

"His passion for people has made him a tremendous mentor, and he will leave a legacy of driven, hard-working teams who care about each other and the customers and communities they serve," he said. 

Hendricks is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University. He started his career with Kroger in the Nashville division management training program in 1981 and was promoted to a grocery buyer two years later. From 1986 to 2000, he held several leadership roles in the Atlanta division before being promoted to Kroger's corporate office in Cincinnati, where he help several roles, including VP of grocery merchandising and procurement. In 2011, he was promoted to VP of merchandising for the Cincinnati/Dayton division, where he served until being appointed to VP of operations in 2014. In October 2015, Scot was promoted to his current role as president of the Delta division. 

Hendricks plans to retire to Florida with his wife Jill. 

A 1999 graduate of the University of Southern California Food Industry Management Program and a 2015 graduate of the University of Southern California Food Industry Executive Program, Smith started out as a courtesy clerk in the Ralphs division in 1983. He held roles such as store manager, operations research analyst, shrink manager, operations coordinator, district manager and meat merchandiser until being promoted to VP of operations in the Houston division in 2015. He moved into his current role in 2016.

"Victor has been a valuable leader for this company, no matter his role, since he started with us 35 years ago," Donnelly said. "He brings a level of operational excellence that will only strengthen the work Scot has done in the Delta division, and will help us continue to deliver on Restock Kroger, our plan to create shareholder value by serving America through food inspiration and uplift."