Rite Aid taps Martindale for senior executive VP role

CAMP HILL, Pa. Rite Aid on Thursday brought another Pathmark veteran to the team—Ken Martindale, who has more than 30 years of marketing, merchandising and operations experience, to the post of senior executive vice president of merchandising, marketing and logistics, effective immediately.

In this position, Martindale, 48, is responsible for category management, merchandising, marketing, supply chain and inventory management for Rite Aid,. He reports to John Standley, Rite Aid president and chief operating officer.

Martindale most recently served as co-president, chief merchandising and marketing officer at Pathmark Stores, until December 2007 when the company was sold to A&P.

“Ken is a seasoned food and drug retail executive with significant experience in nearly every facet of our business and has exceptional leadership skills,” Standley said, who served as Pathmark’s chief executive officer during Martindale’s tenure at the grocery company. “He has a track record of developing successful merchandising and marketing programs that improve profitability. Just as importantly, he can implement those programs at reasonable cost and with minimal disruption to the business.”

Martindale started his retail career in 1975 with Smith’s Food and Drug Centers, a west coast food and drug chain, where he rose from a district manager in store operations to senior vice president of marketing and senior vice president of sales and merchandising.  In January 1998, he joined Fred Meyer, a $15 billion food, drug and general merchandise retailer, after it bought Smith’s. He served as executive vice president, sales and procurement for Fred Meyer until September 1999 after the company’s merger with the Kroger Company.