Supervalu names new president of its DC/Baltimore Shoppers division

MINNEAPOLIS — Supervalu on Monday announced Robert Bly will join the company as president of Shoppers, a 56-store division in the Baltimore/Washington, D.C., market.

Bly is expected to begin his new role on Aug. 22 and will report to Chuck Elias, SVP retail operations. Bly replaces Tim Lowe, who recently accepted a new leadership role in Supervalu's merchandising organization.

"[Bly's] knowledge of grocery operations and improving company performance through proven business acumen will lead Shoppers to improving the bottom line while maintaining our customer experience,” Elias stated.

Bly, 49, most recently VP of the Kmart and Sears divisions for Sears Holdings, has experience turning around underperforming retail operations and helping companies streamline operational costs while ensuring that team members are engaged in the business, Supervalu noted.

Prior to Sears, Bly held positions with Road Ranger, a convenience store chain, and spent 22 years with Meijer, a grocery and general merchandise store where he held executive and store-level positions and implemented statergic plans to improve sales, inventory management and operational execution.

“Bob’s experience in transforming companies makes him an excellent addition to our leadership team. We look forward to his contributions to Shoppers as we pursue our sales, profitability and growth objectives,” Elias said.