Doug Palmer

Rejuvenator of store brand programs

Although he now works on the supplier end of the business, Doug Palmer gained most of his experience in the store brand industry on the retail side. He had an impressive run developing private label programs for retailers across the nation, beginning his career at Thriftway Foods, a small privately held chain in Cincinnati. He gained his first exposure to own brands there, working together with Staff Supermarkets, a private label wholesale cooperative based in Jericho, N.Y. (other members of which included Hannaford Brothers, Seaway Foodtown Supermarkets and Bruno’s).

At Thriftway, Palmer eventually was put in charge of sourcing all private label products and managing both the dairy and the frozen categories. He went on to work for several other retailers, including Ahold USA, as well as Stamford, Conn.-based Daymon Worldwide, where he helped develop private brands for Associated Wholesale Grocers, PetSmart and Kmart.

Savior of Safeway, A&P brands

But it’s the new life he breathed into store brands at Pleasanton, Calif.-based Safeway and The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. (A&P) of Montvale, N.J., that brought Palmer industrywide recognition and respect. While vice president of consumer brands at Safeway, a position he accepted in 2004, he developed and launched several brands — including Safeway Select, Eating Right and O Organics, the latter being the most successful and innovative store brand launch of the past decade, says Brian Cornell, CEO of PepsiCo Americas Foods and former chief marketing officer with Safeway.

“Doug has been one of the true innovators in the store brand space,” he states. “He has left his mark on companies around the industry.”

Rebecca Philbert, president and CEO of Best Yet Market, who worked with Palmer during his tenures at Safeway and A&P, says Palmer understood that he needed the support of the entire retail operations team for any new brand to be a success.

“He took the time to visit all of the divisions across the U.S. and Canada to create relationships with the retail teams to ensure a successful launch for all of the new brand introductions,” she explains.

Palmer left Safeway in 2007 to become vice president of own brands with A&P. During his tenure there, he re-energized the retailer’s private label program with a number of brands, two of which particularly stand out to Rebecca Kewley, regulatory specialist with Organic Foods International and former organic food broker and brand manager with A&P.

“I worked with Doug during my time at A&P, where he initiated niche brands such as Via Roma, an Italian specialty line, and Green Way, an organic and all-natural brand,” Kewley says. “No matter what project Doug is working on, his vision extends beyond the development and execution, and his brands reflect this as they are created to tell a story and capture the true essence and individuality of each brand.”

A contributing factor to Palmer’s success at both Safeway and A&P was his ability to get individuals from different groups to move together in one direction, Philbert says.

“He does this without using muscle or chest pounding,” she states. “He is a true gentleman. Doug is also an effective communicator. He provided constant updates, solicited feedback and shared the successes with all contributors.”

Post-retailer days

After leaving A&P in 2010, Palmer moved to the supplier side of the industry, accepting a senior vice president position at Agro Sevilla USA, a Herndon, Va.-based manufacturer of private brand olives and olive oils, where he continues to work today. He also speaks at several Private Label Manufacturers Association events and works as an independent consultant to store brand suppliers.

In addition to boasting a positive reputation in the store brand industry, Palmer also is known as a family man. He lives with his wife in Chantilly, Va., a suburb of Washington D.C. They have three boys, all of whom are in college: two in graduate school, and the third finishing his bachelor’s degree this year.