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UNFI Hires Erin Horvath to Strengthen Supply Chain Team

United Natural Foods, Inc. has hired Erin Horvath as chief supply chain transformation officer, a new role that will collaborate across functions to help build UNFI’s transformation agenda and future capabilities, drive value creation for shareholders, and create an improving experience for customers and suppliers. She began her role on Oct. 17 and reports to Sandy Douglas, UNFI’s chief executive officer.

“As we work to be the most valuable partner to our grocery retailer customers, we must continue evolving our supply chain network, leveraging automation, creating new efficiencies and capabilities within our facilities, and using technology, data, and insights to improve our customer experience,” Douglas said. “Erin has a wealth of experience, including a unique combination of strategy execution, operations, customer analytics, and software implementation. Throughout her career she has successfully worked across teams and departments and I’m looking forward to seeing how her experience and fresh thinking can best support Mark Bushway, our chief supply chain officer, and Louis Martin, our chief strategy and transformation officer, as they partner together to drive positive results.”

Since assuming the CEO role in August 2021, Douglas has repositioned UNFI’s senior leadership team and sharpened the C\company’s focus on key operational priorities designed to better support its customers, suppliers, associates and the planet. The addition of Horvath to UNFI’s leadership team supports the company’s focus on continuous improvement, and its ongoing work to create a more efficient, expansive, and high-quality food supply network.

“UNFI has a tremendous history and foundation in place, coupled with an exciting growth roadmap that is both aggressive and achievable,” Horvath said. “The food industry, like many industries, is experiencing significant change. UNFI’s focus on, and investment in, advancing technologies and transforming operations is a testament to leadership’s commitment to a long-term strategy that will best support customers and suppliers within this evolving landscape.”

Horvath will oversee UNFI’s fulfillment network transformation, as well lead automation initiatives, including the recently announced automation agreement with Symbotic. Her work will support the company’s long-term strategy, leveraging her 17 years of experience garnered at AmerisourceBergen Corporation, a more than $200 billion global pharmaceutical wholesale company.

During her tenure at AmerisourceBergen, Horvath most recently served as chief transformation officer with a focus on accelerating the company’s high-growth, high-value subsidiaries, strategic partnerships, and mergers and acquisition activities. She also has extensive experience leading AmerisourceBergen’s distribution network in roles as president, distribution services (2019-2021) and senior vice president, distribution services (2017-2019) overseeing a team of over 5,000 associates and managing more than 50 distribution centers.

During this time, she designed a five-year distribution and customer operations strategy, led the building of several new state-of-the-art greenfield distribution centers, and created a diverse, cross functional and geographically dispersed team focused on optimizing the company’s investment in its warehouse automation. She also spent time in senior leadership roles overseeing replenishment, continuous improvement, and commercial operations.

Prior to working with AmerisourceBergen, Horvath served as a management consultant at Smart and Associates, a business consulting firm, and at Arthur Andersen Business Consulting, and garnered foundational experience in distribution and operations at McMaster-Carr Supply Company and the U.S. Department of the Navy as a contract specialist.

Horvath serves as a board member for the Andy Talley Bone Marrow Foundation, and recently completed service for Healthcare Ready where she served as a board member for four years. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from George Washington University and an MBA from Villanova University.

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ASAP.com, Unilever Form Partnership for Ice Cream Products

ASAP.com, the on-demand delivery brand for Waitr Holdings Inc. reached a national partnership with Unilever, one of the world’s leading suppliers of ice cream products, including Ben & Jerry’s, Breyers, Good Humor, Magnum ice cream and more.

The agreement calls for ASAP.com to deliver frozen treats to its consumers. Unilever will coordinate with ASAP’s existing restaurant partners to help add ice cream to their menus. The partnership provides new options for customers, as well as a new revenue stream for restaurants.

ASAP will also deliver from The Ice Cream Shop, Unilever’s virtual storefront, featuring fan-favorite products from beloved ice cream brands Ben & Jerry’s, Breyers, Magnum ice cream and Talenti. Customers can order from The Ice Cream Shop at more than 2,000 locations across the country, including the New York Tri-State Area, where ASAP just debuted.

“Adding the top ice cream brands to the ASAP platform will be a tasty treat for our loyal customers,” said Carl Grimstad, CEO and chairman of the board of ASAP, Inc. “And going into partnership with Unilever is another high-profile implementation of our new business model to ‘deliver anything’ to consumers, same day, from any type of business.”

“We are thrilled to begin this partnership with ASAP as Unilever continues to expand the many ways customers across the country can enjoy our frozen treats,” said Russel Lilly, general manager, North American Ice Cream. “It’s not only exciting to further grow The Ice Cream Shop’s customer base with ASAP, but we are also honored to build out restaurant partners’ menus with our variety of offerings to bring something sweet to every customer.”

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SpartanNash Promotes Tayebi to EVP, Chief Strategy & Information Officer

Food solutions company SpartanNash has promoted Masiar Tayebi to executive vice president, chief strategy and information officer. Tayebi was hired in April 2021 as EVP, chief strategy officer.

“SpartanNash is more focused than ever on being the most customer-focused, innovative food solutions company,” said SpartanNash CEO Tony Sarsam. “Our innovation through technology goes hand-in-hand with the overall strategy of the company, making Masiar a natural leader for the IT function moving forward. He brings more than two decades of experience connecting strategy, technology, innovation and execution to drive growth and transformational change.

Prior to SpartanNash, Tayebi served as global head of corporate strategy and business development at Whirlpool Corporation. In that role, he was responsible for strategy and acquisitions, including Yummly, a leading technology food platform offering online grocery delivery. After acquiring Yummly in 2017, Masiar served as chief operating officer at Yummly, executing Whirlpool’s innovation growth strategy and tripling users to 23 million.

Previously, Tayebi was an executive director at UBS focused on strategy, M&A and transformational change. During his time at UBS, he served in various leadership positions, including Americas chief technology officer and global head of change management for its Asset Management division. Before joining UBS, Tayebi worked with various Fortune 500 clients on strategic initiatives during his time in management consulting.

Tayebi holds an MBA from the University of Chicago, Booth School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in economics and finance from Bentley University. He was named one of the University of Chicago Booth’s Top 15 Alumni in Tech.

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