Albertsons names Jonathan Gardner to lead strategic sourcing

Former Starbucks executive Jonathan Gardner (left) has joined Albertsons Cos. as group vice president of strategic sourcing, a newly created position.

The Boise, Idaho-based grocer said late yesterday that it also has promoted David Nelsen to group vice president of manufacturing.

Most recently, Gardner was vice president of global sourcing and supplier relations at Starbucks, overseeing the coffee chain’s beverage, dairy, packaging, print production and supply development teams in Seattle. Albertsons noted that he also set strategic and cultural priorities for over 200 sourcing professionals in an organization linking sourcing offices in Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, Tokyo, Toronto and Seattle. He began his nine-year career at Starbucks as director of sourcing for IT and digital.

At Albertsons, Gardner will report to Evan Rainwater, senior vice president of strategic sourcing and manufacturing.

“Jonathan is an incredible leader who brings a significant amount of experience to our established strategic sourcing team, and we look forward to having someone with his expertise and acumen lead the expansion of our goods-not-for-resale (GNFR) efforts,” Rainwater said in a statement.

Nelsen (left), who previously held the title of vice president of manufacturing, has been with Albertsons’ manufacturing team since 2001 and held various leadership roles. Over the past few years, he led the expansion of manufacturing’s capabilities and product offering to retail, including extended shelf-life dairy and plant-based products, Icelandic and Greek yogurt, and more ice cream products, Albertsons said, adding that he also was instrumental in opening its Hatfield Milk plant.

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“David’s manufacturing experience is industry-leading,” Rainwater commented. “This combination of leaders will position us to further our efficiencies and create opportunities to invest in our company.”

Improved operational efficiencies will help Albertsons drive its omnichannel strategy, according to Susan Morris, executive vice president and chief operations officer. GNFR includes goods and services purchased to support company operations.

“We’re focused on making moves that improve our productivity and agility so that we can strategically invest in our omnichannel future,” Morris explained. “GNFR can provide a productivity lift to many areas of our company. Jonathan’s new role will be key to driving that so that we can best serve our 13 operating divisions, 2,200-plus stores and 34 million customers every day.”

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