Albertsons taps PepsiCo exec as merchandising head

A veteran CPG executive is leaving PepsiCo to join Albertsons Companies as executive VP and chief merchandising officer.

Jennifer Saenz will join Albertsons as executive VP, chief merchandising officer effective July 12, 2021. Saenz will be responsible for all areas of merchandising within the company, including own brands. Saenz will also be responsible for further strengthening Albertsons’ relationships with its brand partners. She will join the senior leadership team and report to Vivek Sankaran, president and CEO.

Saenz, 43, has over 15 years of experience in the CPG sector, holding roles of increasing responsibility within PepsiCo since 2005. Since 2019, Saenz has served as global chief marketing officer and president, global foods, with responsibility for the $30 billion PepsiCo Foods portfolio. From 2015 to 2019, Saenz served as senior VP & chief marketing officer of PepsiCo Foods North America. From 2009 to 2015, she held a number of brand and customer marketing positions within Frito-Lay.

“We’re excited to welcome Jennifer to the Albertsons team,” said Sankaran. “A commitment to serving our customers with a broad and differentiated assortment of products is a key aspect of our transformation strategy. Jennifer’s extensive global industry experience and proven track record of driving growth through marketing, analytics and product innovation, grounded in a deep understanding of the consumer, will allow her to make significant contributions to our business and elevate the Albertsons brand for our customers, brand partners and associates.”

“I am honored to join Albertsons, and to work with Vivek and the company’s talented management team,” said Saenz. “Albertsons is undertaking a transformation that is further strengthening its position as an industry leader focused on deepening its relationship with customers. I am excited to leverage my experience and partner with our vendors to continue providing great products and great value to our customers.”

Saenz graduated from The Goizueta School of Business at Emory University with a Bachelor of Business Administration and received an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.