Kroger Names Rudy DiPietro as President of Newly-Formed Texas Division

Kroger announced a change in leadership structure for a more competitive future by consolidating the presidents of the Dallas and Houston Divisions into a single executive leader. Rudy DiPietro, currently president of Dallas Division, has been named president of Kroger’s newly formed Texas Division, effective August 1. Rudy will report to Valerie Jabbar, senior vice president of retail divisions. The change follows the retirement of Laura Gump, president of Kroger’s Houston Division after 38 years of dedicated service in the grocery retail industry and five years as a Kroger division leader.

Kroger’s newly formed Texas Division consists of more than 210 stores and 26,000 associates in North, East and Southeast Texas and West, Central and Southwest Louisiana.

DiPietro brings a wealth of experience and expertise in the retail industry. Over the course of his 21-year career with Ahold Delhaize USA, he held a variety of leadership roles across many of the organization’s family of brands. Most recently, he served as vice president of Omnichannel Planning and Execution, where he spearheaded omnichannel planning and execution strategies across five brands. He previously served the Stop & Shop brand as the vice president of Omnichannel Merchandising Planning and Execution and senior vice president of Sales and Operations, driving operational focus and customer loyalty throughout the market. Prior to his roles with Stop & Shop, he held leadership roles with the Food Lion and Hannaford brands, including vice president of Merchandising for Food Lion and 2020 strategy vice president and vice president of retail operations for Hannaford’s Western Division.

“Simplifying into a single Texas division is a strategic decision to create more efficiencies, which allows the team to run great stores with lower prices and deeper investments in our associates,” said Valarie Jabbar, senior vice president of retail divisions at Kroger. “We are confident that Rudy’s leadership and experience will bring together the two teams to create an even better shopping experience for our Texas customers.”

About Kroger

At Kroger, a company of The Kroger Co., we are Fresh for Everyone™ and dedicated to our Purpose: To Feed the Human Spirit®. In Texas and Louisiana, we are 26,000 associates in more than 210 stores who serve customers daily through a seamless shopping experience. We are committed to creating #ZeroHungerZeroWaste communities by 2030. To learn more about us, visit our newsroom and investor relations site.