PROVIDENCE, R.I.– United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE: UNFI) (“UNFI”) today announced that Louis Martin has been appointed to the newly created position of Chief Strategy & Transformation Officer, with oversight of the Company’s long-term growth strategy. Martin, who currently serves as President of the Global Walmart Customer Team at The Coca-Cola Company, will join UNFI on March 21, 2022, and will report to Sandy Douglas, UNFI’s Chief Executive Officer.
“As we execute and evolve our Fuel the Future strategy, we are committed to building on both existing and new business platforms to deliver long-term, sustainable growth. The creation of this new role reflects our confidence in the value UNFI is positioned to generate across our entire ecosystem, including customers, suppliers, partners, and investors,” said Mr. Douglas. “Louis is a seasoned leader with both a strategic and an operations background. His addition to our team will help drive UNFI’s next chapter of growth.”
“I am excited to join UNFI and play a role in accelerating the many growth opportunities ahead. I look forward to engaging with the talented UNFI team as we build new capabilities to enhance our customer experience,” said Mr. Martin, who will serve as an executive officer of the Company.
Under the new leadership structure, Martin will oversee UNFI’s Revenue Management, M&A, Continuous Improvement, and Project Management Office. In addition, he will partner to further drive and enable UNFI’s Fuel the Future strategy efforts by unleashing new capabilities around supply chain, technology, data standardization, and automation acceleration. Matt Whitney will maintain responsibility for UNFI’s critical growth platforms including Professional Services, eCommerce and Emerging Business units and serve as the Company’s Chief Growth Officer.
Through his 15 years with Coca-Cola, Martin held a range of positions with increasing responsibility, from Strategic Initiatives, where he led the post-acquisition integration of the glaceau beverage business into the North America bottling system, to Investor Relations, where he supported the development and communication of Coca-Cola’s long-term strategic vision to the investment community. Before leading the Global Walmart Customer team, he was Senior Vice President of System Evolution for Coca-Cola North America, where he guided the refranchising and transformation efforts of Coca-Cola’s North American bottling, distribution, and supply chain businesses.
Prior to working with Coca-Cola, Martin was with McKinsey & Company from 2002 to 2007, where he led strategic and operational transformation initiatives across the globe, including in the U.S., Mexico, Panama, Ecuador, Switzerland, and Japan. Martin also worked for E.D. & F. Man, a British Sugar Trade House, from 1994 to 2000, where he ran a commodity trading and distribution company based out of Central America. Born in Puerto Rico, Mr. Martin holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from Princeton University as well as an MBA in Finance and Management from the Stern School of Business at New York University.
About United Natural Foods
UNFI is North America’s premier food wholesaler delivering the widest variety of products to customer locations throughout North America including natural product superstores, independent retailers, conventional supermarket chains, ecommerce retailers, and food service customers. By providing this deeper ‘full-store’ selection and compelling brands for every aisle, UNFI is uniquely positioned to deliver great food, more choices, and fresh thinking to customers everywhere. Today, UNFI is the largest publicly traded grocery distributor in America. To learn more about how UNFI is Fueling the Future of Food, visit www.unfi.com.
