<p>Jewel-Osco is making some executive changes in the wake of the company’s transition of the closed Dominick’s stores in Chicago. William Emmons, President, will be stepping down from his position less than a year after taking his role. Jim Rice, Vice President of Operations, will be taking his place on an interim basis, according to Chicago Tribune.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Emmons came out of retirement to begin his role at Jewel in March after it became part of New Albertsons Inc. as part of a $3.3 billion deal. Under his leadership, the company expanded its line of fresh offerings, while also making various store adjustments such as the removal of self-checkout and an increased focus on customer service.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Rice will continue these same initiatives while also focusing on the remodeling of 35 to 40 stores, including the four converted Dominick’s stores. Jewel recently completed remodeling 19 stores late last year at about $1 million apiece. Transforming the four stores in less than four days will cost about $3 million, according to Rice. “Our main goal right now is just to transition it from a Dominick’s to a Jewel-Osco,” Rice said. “We’ll come back down the road and remodel these stores.”<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">These changes focus on fresher produce, including a larger selection of pre-cut fruit and vegetables and new juice bars that offer celery, kale, and carrot concoctions.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">More than 50 former Dominick’s locations are still up for grabs, with sources pointing to Central Grocers and Whole Foods as potential buyers. With an aggressive marketing campaign and new, refreshed stores, Rice expects that business will soon surpass what Dominick’s achieved at the same locations.</p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href=" http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-0115-supermarket-openings-20140115,0,3643636.story" target="_new"> Chicago Tribune </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
