Kroger Announces Retirement of Delta Division President Scot Hendricks and Promotes Victor Smith to Role

CINCINNATI, Dec. 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Kroger Co. KR today announced the retirement of Delta Division President Scot Hendricks, and the promotion of Victor Smith to succeed him. Mr. Smith currently serves as vice president of merchandising for the Ralphs division.

Scot Hendricks to Retire after 38 Years of Service
Scot Hendricks will retire from the company, effective February 2, 2019, after 38 years of distinguished service – the last three leading Kroger's Delta division with 15,800 associates, serving customers in 101 stores across West Tennessee and parts of Mississippi, Arkansas, Kentucky and Missouri.

"Scot's genuine love and passion for the retail business and for his Delta family is illustrated in his interactions with everyone he meets," said Mike Donnelly, Kroger's executive vice president and COO. "His passion for people has made him a tremendous mentor, and he will leave a legacy of driven, hard-working teams who care about each other and the customers and communities they serve."

A graduate of Middle Tennessee State University, Scot began his career with Kroger in the Nashville division management training program in 1981. After two years, he was promoted to a grocery buyer. From 1986-2000, Scot served in several leadership roles in the Atlanta division. In 2000, he was promoted to Kroger's corporate office in Cincinnati, where he served in different roles of increasing responsibility including vice president of grocery merchandising and procurement. In 2011, he was promoted to vice president of merchandising for the Cincinnati/Dayton division, where he served until he was appointed to vice president of operations in 2014. In October 2015, Scot was promoted to his current role as president of the Delta division.

Scot is active in the Delta community. He is a member of the Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce Chairman's Circle. Scot is also on the board of the Mid-South Food Bank in Memphis, Tennessee, and led all Delta fundraising efforts to help feed families in the poorest areas of the state. An avid supporter of first responders and military personnel, Scot led the first veteran Thanksgiving dinner distribution in 2017. Through his efforts, the Delta division has donated holiday meals to 3,500 veterans and Memphis police officers over the past two years.

In retirement, Scot and his wife, Jill, plan to move to Florida and spend more time with their children and five grandchildren.

Victor Smith Promoted to President of Delta Division
Victor Smith, currently vice president of merchandising for the Ralphs division, has been promoted to president of the Delta division, succeeding Scot Hendricks, effective February 3, 2019. He will work closely with Scot to ensure a successful transition, and his replacement will be announced at a later date. 

"Victor has been a valuable leader for this company, no matter his role, since he started with us 35 years ago," continued Mr. Donnelly. "He brings a level of operational excellence that will only strengthen the work Scot has done in the Delta division, and will help us continue to deliver on Restock Kroger, our plan to create shareholder value by serving America through food inspiration and uplift."

Victor joined Kroger in 1983 as a courtesy clerk in the Ralphs division. He advanced to other roles within the division including store manager, operations research analyst, shrink manager, operations coordinator, district manager and meat merchandiser. In 2015, Victor was promoted to vice president of operations in the Houston division, before returning to Ralphs in his current role in 2016, where he leads merchandising, both sales and marketing, for all 191 Ralphs locations throughout Southern California.

Victor is a 1999 graduate of the University of Southern California Food Industry Management Program, a 2015 graduate of the University of Southern California Food Industry Executive Program and is on the board of directors for the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank.

To download headshots of Mr. Hendricks and Mr. Smith, visit here.

About Kroger
At The Kroger Co. KR, we are dedicated to our Purpose: to Feed the Human Spirit™. We are nearly half a million associates who serve over nine million customers daily through a seamless digital shopping experience and 2,800 retail food stores under a variety of banner names, serving America through food inspiration and uplift, and creating #ZeroHungerZeroWaste communities by 2025. To learn more about us, visit our newsroom and investor relations site.

SOURCE The Kroger Co.