ONTARIO, CA - Not one, but two leaders have been promoted within Heritage Grocers Group’s (HGG) ranks. In a recent announcement, the retail chain unveiled that Eric Stover has been appointed as HGG President, while Prabash Coswatte has been selected to take over the Chief Operating Officer role.
Stover recently held the position of Chief Executive Officer for Cardenas Markets. Prior to joining the Cardenas Markets business in 2020 as Chief Merchandising Officer, he held various leadership roles in merchandising and operations for several food retailers including Sprouts Farmers Market, Wild Oats, and Henry’s Farmers Market. Stover also held senior roles with wholesale and distribution companies United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI) and KeHE Distributors.
In his new role, he will have direct oversight of category management, supply chain, pricing, schematics, marketing, loyalty program efforts, e-commerce, and B2B/wholesale business for all Heritage Grocers Group banners.
As the release explained, Stover also serves on the Board of Directors for the Western Association of Food Chains (WAFC) and the Cardenas Markets Foundation, and he sits on the Food Industry Round Table for Olive Crest.
Coswatte has also received a promotion, taking on another integral role after recently serving as Chief Administrative Officer for HGG.
Coswatte joined the Cardenas Markets banner as Chief Information Officer in 2019. Before joining Cardenas, he served as CIO for Vallarta Supermarkets, Vice President - Enterprise Program Management for 99 Cents Only Stores, Senior Project Manager for Cambridge Associates, and Senior Consultant for Deloitte Consulting.
In this new COO position, Coswatte will oversee store operations, information technology, continuous improvement, data integrity, loss prevention, internal audits, construction, and facilities maintenance.
Both Stover and Coswatte will be reporting to HGG CEO Doug Sanders.
“The promotions of Eric and Prabash further aligns and unifies the organizational structure of Heritage Grocers Group,” Sanders commented. “They are exceptional leaders whose extensive experience and expertise will be instrumental in executing our growth strategy, as well as deepening the HGG connection to communities and serving the local customer.”
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