AWG Names Kelly Kauffman as Chief Financial Officer

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. (AWG) has announced that Kelly Kauffman has joined the company as Chief Financial Officer. Kauffman succeeds Gary Koch, who is retiring at the end of the year after a distinguished career.

Kauffman brings extensive financial leadership experience spanning the retail, financial services and consumer goods industries, with deep expertise in financial planning and analysis (FP&A), corporate transformation initiatives and operational finance.

Most recently, Kauffman served as Senior Vice President of Financial Planning and Analysis at BJ’s Wholesale Club, where he led corporate FP&A teams across multiple financial disciplines. He also modernized forecasting and reporting through the implementation of new planning systems, streamlining planning activities and enabling faster, more informed decision-making across the organization.

Previously, Kauffman was Vice President of Finance at Whole Foods Market, where he led global FP&A functions, managed annual and long-term financial planning, and spearheaded major continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives.

He also played a key role in developing the financial modeling that supported the company’s sale to Amazon and provided executive oversight for large-scale financial system transformations, including Workday, Anaplan and Adaptive Insights, while building strong cross-functional finance and operations teams.

Earlier in his career, Kauffman held progressive corporate finance and audit positions with EZCORP, Inc., Pamida, Cabela’s, Inc., Nestlé USA and Grant Thornton LLP. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

“Kelly is a proven finance leader with a strong track record of driving performance, improving processes and building high-performing teams,” said Dan Funk, president and CEO of AWG.

“His experience in retail, coupled with his ability to lead transformation and strengthen financial operations, makes him an excellent fit for AWG as we continue to grow and support our members. We’re excited to welcome him to the team.”

Funk added, “We are also incredibly grateful for Gary Koch’s outstanding leadership and contributions to AWG over the past 30 years. His impact on our organization has been significant, and we look forward to celebrating his career as he prepares for retirement.”

About AWG

Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. (AWG) is the nation’s largest cooperative food wholesaler serving independently owned supermarkets. The company serves 1,100 member companies operating 3,500 locations across 33 states through nine wholesale division support centers.

Consolidated sales for AWG totaled $12.2 billion in 2025. In addition to its cooperative wholesale operations, the company operates subsidiary businesses that provide real estate and supermarket development services, as well as pharmaceutical products.