The Giant Company hires Ted Williams to lead nonfoods
Food and drug retail veteran makes return to the Ahold fold
July 6, 2022
Thirty-year industry veteran Ted Williams has joined The Giant Company as director of nonfoods.
Carlisle, Pa.-based Giant said Williams started as nonfoods director yesterday. In the role, he will oversee product categories including health and personal care, seasonal, general merchandise (GM), pet supplies, candy, and baby. He reports directly to Parag Shah, vice president of center store omnichannel merchandising at Giant.
Most recently, Williams (pictured left) served as the chief operating officer of HLS-Higher Level Solutions, an Annapolis, Md.-based consulting, sales and marketing firm that helps CPG companies develop their brand while launching into e-commerce and physical retail.
Giant noted that Williams brings decades of experience in the food and drug retail channels. Before joining HLS, he spent nearly a dozen years at Rite Aid, most recently as group vice president of category management from 2019 to 2020 and as group vice president of consumables, GM and seasonal category management from 2008 to 2020.
Prior to Rite Aid, Williams held roles at Pathmark Stores, joining the supermarket chain in 2005 as director of nonfoods sales and merchandising and later being promoted to vice president of nonfoods and pharmacy. Earlier in his career, he served as a divisional merchandise manager at CVS Pharmacy and previously worked at Ahold USA as a category management business consultant as well as with the company’s Giant Food subsidiary as director of retail pricing and director of grocery category management.
Part of Ahold Delhaize USA, The Giant Company operates about 190 grocery stores under the Giant, Martin’s and Giant Heirloom Market banners in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. Its retail operations also include 133 pharmacies, 107 fuel stations, and more than 175 online pickup hubs and grocery delivery in hundreds of ZIP codes, with e-commerce service also serving communities in New Jersey.
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