BOISE, ID - From JR Shields and Nash Finch to Associated Grocers and Albertsons, Dan Sutton has more than seen the grocery landscape change, he has grown up within it. With nearly 48 years under his belt and a wealth of retail expertise to spotlight his career, Dan is looking to the next chapter in his life with the announcement of his upcoming retirement this month.
“Albertsons has been a great company to work for, and I am tremendously appreciative to have had such an amazing opportunity,” Dan shares with me. “From Joe Albertson to our current CEO, Bob Miller, the leaders have come up through the retail-side of the business, bringing insight and vision to the company. The culture they have created is an incredible one I won’t soon forget.”
Dan’s passion and appreciation for our industry root deep and began back in high school, where he started working for—in his mind—a very tough grocer while in Hill City, Kansas.
“I wish now that I could have been more like JR Shields, who was the Owner of Shields IGA. He was a phenomenal trainer, mentor, and business owner and taught me the meaning of hard work and also a sense of community and charity,” Dan shares with me. “JR was the kind of guy who would send me out on a delivery in his car, and when you got there, the family didn’t know why I was delivering stuff because they couldn’t afford it. And he didn’t expect to be paid.”
After building a career across retail, Dan joined Albertsons in Denver, Colorado, in 1982 as a Produce Buyer. In 1992, Albertsons moved his family to Boise and Dan into a new position as Director of Produce Procurement. Then, in 2001, Dan was promoted to VP of Produce Procurement. In 2006, the produce veteran went to work for Albertsons LLC—a Cerberus company—as VP of Produce Sales and Procurement. When the LLC company grew through acquisitions, Dan moved back over to VP of Produce Procurement.
In addition, Dan, along with several others started Basket of Joy back in 1988, an annual project of Volunteers of America, The Denver Post, and Safeway to bring holiday fruit baskets to limited income seniors in the Denver area. Thanks to the help of over 1,000 volunteers and valuable community partners, Basket of Joy provides 5,280 nutritious baskets to seniors every year.
You can tell that passion is not an area where Dan is lacking. When I ask Dan what his aspirations are for the industry, he tells me that he hopes that the next generation will see the immense number of possibilities they can discover in its fold.
“I think that the grocery industry is amazing, but it seems to be somewhat misunderstood by career seekers,” Dan says. “There are tons of career opportunities, not only in the retail environment, but also in logistics, IT, marketing, HR, and procurement. Whether local, regional, or at a corporate level, there are potential careers for about anyone who wants to apply themselves. But you don’t hear those opportunities being touted much outside the industry. I hope that will change.”
So what is next for Dan as he moves toward officially retiring at the end of this month?
“I am very much looking forward to retirement and will mainly continue doing what I already do—minus coming to work every day. So, I’ll be playing with our granddaughter Rosie, golfing more, woodworking to master hand-cut dovetails, and doing a bit of traveling. I will also be doing a little voice-over work to finance the other hobbies,” he smiles and says.
Not a bad way to enter retirement and the road ahead if you ask me! Dan, congratulations on an amazing career, and thank you for sharing your story with AndNowUKnow and the industry!
