Corporate Governance

Stater Bros. has announced that VP of real estate Mike Slaton passed away suddenly on Saturday, Sept. 28. He was 51 years old.

As a tribute to Slaton, the 44,000-sq.-ft. Stater Bros. supermarket that opened recently in Redlands, Calif., will be dedicated in his honor.  
 

Newell Rubbermaid is consolidating its marketing efforts and picking one lead creative partner and one lead media-buying partner to help oversee the company’s global advertising and promotion investment.

The Clorox Company has updated its strategic growth plan. Called the 2020 Strategy, it focuses on delivering long-term, profitable growth through the year 2020 and builds upon the company's recently completed centennial strategy.

Pittsburgh -- GNC Holdings has acquired A1 Sports Limited, which operates under the Discount Supplements moniker. The company is the leading multi-brand sports nutrition e-commerce retailer in the United Kingdom. Terms of the deal, which was funded with cash on hand, were not disclosed.
 
Following the acquisition, GNC.com, LuckyVitamin.com and Discount-supplements.co.uk will continue to operate as separate businesses, each with its own product offerings and target customers.

Boston -- Over half (54%) of American bought a product associated with a cause over the last 12 months, a 170% increase since 1993, according to a report by Cone Communications. And 89% of Americans are likely to switch brands to one associated with a cause, given comparable price and quality, up nearly 35% since 1993.

New York -- Artisanal Brands, a marketer and distributor of specialty, artisanal and farmstead cheeses and other specialty food products, has signed a long-term lease on a new Artisanal Cheese Center in New York City with cheese aging caves, production and office facilities, as well as the first retail outlet to be owned and managed by the company.  
   

Pittsburgh -- Genco has been selected to manage a truckload transportation procurement event for Shopko.  The collaborative effort will encompass Shopko's inbound and outbound transportation network and is the third strategic procurement engagement Genco has provided to Shopko.

New York -- Consumers are choosing specialty foods over conventional foods at record levels, according to research from the Specialty Food Association.
 
Nearly 75% of U.S. consumers report making specialty food purchases this year, a major increase since the economic downturn of 2009 when only 46% reported that they bought these high-quality products. Consumers surveyed say they spend about one quarter of their at-home food dollars on specialty options like artisanal chocolates, cheeses and oils.

QVC has appointed Bob Spieth as executive VP of QVC's customer and business services.     He will oversee supply chain, customer service and experience, operations strategy, and corporate real estate and workplace services for both QVC and zulily businesses, with the exception of zulily's corporate facilities.    Spieth joined zulily in 2013 as COO. Prior to zulily, he held several leadership roles with OHL, one of the world's largest third-party logistics companies