Superior Grocers CEO Wardwell Hailed For Exceptional Leadership, Dedication

There are words that come up frequently when people talk about Richard Wardwell, president and CEO of Superior Grocers. Driven. Intense. Hands-on. Aware. Friendly. Funny. Tireless. Good-hearted. Humble. Competitive.

He doesn’t sleep much and works six 15ish-hour days a week, which would make most people unable to be any of those things.

When he’s not out visiting the company’s 73 stores, Wardwell greets employees at Superior’s distribution center and headquarters in the morning and the afternoon, making sure to stop and sing to those having a birthday (normally there are balloons or other signals to clue him in). He stops in every office, every cubicle, according to his team members. They say it’s because he recognizes that people are vital to any company’s success.

After joining Santa Fe Springs, California-based Superior Grocers in late 2014 as VP of operations and then moving up through the ranks to become president and CEO in 2022, Wardwell has learned about the Hispanic grocery business and devoted himself to learning Spanish to help him communicate better with team members.

He challenges people, he inspires people, he wants to win and he wants to make Mimi Song, Superior Grocers’ founder and chairman, proud that she took a chance on him nearly a decade ago.

He’s an exceptional leader with a rich history in the grocery business in the West, which makes Rich Wardwell worthy to be inducted into the Shelby Publishing Food Industry Hall of Fame.

In the following Q&A, Wardwell covers a wide range of topics, including his upbringing, his early years in the grocery business, what he’s learned at Superior and a near-death experience at the hands of a bear.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview. Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your back story? What led you to this particular career path?

I started working at Raley’s when I graduated high school. I needed a part-time job while going to college in Reno. I wanted to get a criminal justice degree, then go to work for the Nevada Highway Patrol. I applied and was going through the acceptance process to go into the academy when Dave Steitz offered me a management role within Raley’s.

I was newly married, my first child on the way, and at the time Raley’s paid more, so I gave up the dream of going fast with the sirens and lights flashing to fully immerse myself in my retail career.

I was lucky enough that I had many great leaders before me that took the time to help me learn and develop. Bud Geisking was my first store manager who took me under his wing to show me the basics of the business.

Hank Lewandowski was another great mentor. He took so much time to teach me the accounting and details of the business in order to make money and maximize return. He was such a great role model. Hard-working, kind, thoughtful, demanding, funny and driven.

Vince Testa, who has since passed, promoted me to my first store director position within Raley’s and continued to mentor me to help me achieve a higher role in the company. When Raley’s entered the Las Vegas market, Vince promoted me to a food service supervisor in the district. There I was introduced to another great mentor, Yvonne Peters, who sent me to baking school, cheese culinary programs, had me tour many food service facilities, taught me how to operate our central bakery in Sacramento and drove into my brain the elements of cost control in food service.

After Las Vegas, Vince promoted me to director of operations for Raley’s New Mexico, where I worked for seven years until Raley’s sold the division. I was offered a role back in Sacramento, but after 25 years I felt I needed to make a change.

Steve Junqueiro hired me at Save Mart as the director of operations for the Nevada Division. At Save Mart there were so many people that welcomed me and continued to mentor me about the business. Steve Beaver was the VP of operations. He was the best grocer I had ever met at the time. He took so much time to walk the stores with me, teach me the ins and outs of everything Save Mart had done and why they had done it. He was a consummate professional and someone I truly admired. He had a magnificent work ethic and always acted with the company’s best interests in mind.

Steve was the CEO of Save Mart at the time, and he welcomed me into the company, made himself available for questions, asked for feedback on a regular basis and was a great leader for the company and myself.

My favorite quote from Steve that I still use today is: “Grocery is a simple business but not an easy one.” How true. From the outside, a person might think it is just buying and selling, but to all of us in the grocery business we know how difficult some things are.

After four years with Save Mart, I was offered a chance to go work for Walmart. It was something I was seeking, as I wanted to learn how and why they did things. I went as a store manager for the Ceres location and worked for one year, learning as much as I could about the operation. It was a great experience, and I am glad I went.

While I was working at Walmart, Bob Tiernan with Raley’s approached me about coming back to Raley’s as the VP of operations for their Food Source Division. While working at Food Source, one day I received a call from Brenda Sarti and was asked if I would be willing to have a conversation with Mimi Song. I was not looking for a job at the time but was always interested in meeting new people.

The phone call was supposed to be about 15 minutes or so but ended up being over an hour. I had pulled off the side of the road so I would not lose cell coverage while talking to her. I was there for such a long time that a highway patrol officer knocked on my window and asked me to move along.

From that point, I came down to Los Angeles and interviewed two times more and was offered the role of vice president of operations. I was promoted over the last 10 years to SVP of operations, then to COO in 2018 then to president right before the pandemic and then to president and CEO in 2022.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading the company?

My favorite story to tell about coming to work for Superior happened on my first-year anniversary.

I was called into the large conference room in the main office and most people from the office were inside with a cake and first-year certificate. Mimi was there and started the meeting by telling me how happy she was that I made it a year because most don’t. I told her that I wish she had mentioned that in the interview process.

I love that story because it tells the demand of leadership … retail is difficult at times and a lot of people don’t make it because of many reasons.

Some of the most common reasons that come to mind are: The demands of the schedule and number of hours required are too much for some. My workdays usually begin at 3:30 a.m. and end around 6-7 p.m., six days a week. With that type of work schedule, I am consistently texting or sending messages asking others about the business. That type of on-call demand can be tiring for some.

We are a 24-7 business, and there is a high demand for action that is particularly challenging and rewarding, but it is not for everyone.

Mimi works hard and has ambitious standards. She does not ask you to do things that she isn’t doing as well. It has been good for me to try and meet those standards.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Working my first store as a new manager, I was trying hard to do the right things and work harder and faster, as I thought that was the way to climb and be noticed.

I was working the evening shift at Golden Valley and was being called to the front while receiving a load. Being the only manager on duty, I was hurrying to get the back door shut and get up front … I came barreling out the backroom door talking to myself because they were calling every five seconds, it seemed. I came rushing out and almost knocked over the DM for the division, as he was the one asking for me to come up front.

He was so mad. I laugh about it now but learned that you cannot do everything at once, and you need to try and stay calm whenever many things are demanding of your time. As a CEO, all mistakes – and I have made plenty – I don’t consider funny.

The most common mistakes I’ve made were day-to-day decisions. Things like designing a new store that doesn’t work quite the way you envisioned. Mistakes about competitive activities and how to approach the way we go to market. I try to make decisions quickly and work on correcting if a mistake is made.

I really like Elon Musk’s quote, “I would rather be optimistic and wrong than pessimistic and right.” I think that is a powerful quote.

None of us can achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person you are grateful for who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I have so many people to thank that helped me along the way from the very beginning, but a person that kickstarted my career that I truly admired was Bud Geisking. Bud was my first store manager at Raley’s, and he took me under his wing and taught me so much about myself and the business.

Bud taught me the importance of merchandising, mark-down processes, how to project seasonal buying and how to successfully transition the seasons in the store to maximize sales. He tried his best to humble me and was very pointed in the way he wanted me to be for him to endorse me.

 It took quite a while to win that endorsement, but I remember what he said. He told me that he took extra time and held me back, and he did that so that he knew I would have the best chance at being successful. He was such a good person. He constantly took me aside to review my work and teach me things about the business that kept stretching me.

He would make sure that I was OK and would give me side jobs around his property to make extra money so that I would be able to survive better. I put a new roof on his home, built a cedar fence around his home and finished concrete pads in his back yard to make extra money.

I had learned those types of skills from my dad and brothers. We grew up in Elko, Nevada. My dad was a truck driver/mechanic, and my mom was a stay-at-home mom until my high school years when she worked as a bookkeeper. My brothers, sisters and I would work at the ranch in Ruby Valley, branding in the fall and haying in the summer.

I learned how to butcher beef and chickens while also doing any labor around the ranch, whether that be putting up fencing or fixing roofs. We had to be self-sufficient as a family, so I learned a lot of different skills from my dad and mom. When we moved into a new house in Elko, I remember forming and finishing the concrete patio, building the fence around the property, putting in the grass and many other jobs.

In addition to those skills, my mom and dad taught me how to cook. I think I still bake the best banana bread in my family. My sister, Rosie, might be a little better, but it is a close contest.

[RELATED: Superior Grocers Opens Second Store In Victorville, CA]

 

In my work, I often talk about how to release and relieve stress. As a busy leader, what do you do to prepare your mind and body before a stressful or high-stakes meeting, talk or decision? Can you share a story or some examples?

A lot of stressful things that need immediate attention just happen out of the blue, and the way I prepare for those are the same way I prepare for the times that you know it is going to be stressful. I laugh, I take a long walk, I talk to a friend that I have not spoken to in a while, I will call one of my kids or grandkids and just take time to check in. Then I say to myself, “This too shall pass.”

In addition, I try to prepare myself to answer any questions or come up with as many solutions as possible to try and minimize the stressful times. I also take time away from the job in order to help with the stress. I love the outdoors, hunting and traveling.

I have had the good fortune of being able to hunt dove in Argentina, go fishing in Patagonia, go on a two-week African safari hunt, hunt red stag in New Zealand and black bear in Idaho and Canada. Sometimes, things that you hope relieve stress actually cause you more.

I will tell you something that not many people know about me. In September 2022, while hunting black bear in Canada, I was charged by the bear while in my tree stand. I had shot the bear at last legal light and the bear charged the stand. I was not strapped in and ended up falling over 20 feet to the ground. I broke seven ribs and four vertebrae. I was on the ground, broken, with a 500-pound wounded bear in close proximity – not to mention I was 30 yards away from a baiting station for other bears.

I was able to get to my feet, straighten out the tree stand and make my way back up to get my phone and flashlight that were in my backpack. I called the guide for help and after about 30 minutes I was put into a vehicle and taken to a hospital two hours away. I then was transported to Winnipeg trauma unit, where they tried to patch me up. Twenty-four hours later, I left the hospital to go back to the lodge. Four days later, I was on a plane back to the USA to go to the CGA conference in Palm Springs. My team was waiting for me. I was in so much pain but was thankful to be back at work. Sometimes, vacations are more stressful than work.

As you know, the United States is facing a very important self-reckoning about race, diversity, equality and inclusion. Can you articulate to our readers a few reasons why it is so important for a business or organization to have a diverse executive team?

People’s perception is their reality; their upbringing and life experiences shape the way they act or feel about certain things, and being able to participate and bring those different ideas and experiences to the table and take part in the leadership of a company, I feel, only strengthens a company.

Many times in our company, as world events are unfolding or even things taking place in our state, having the ability to be able to go to the executive team and get valuable insight from their perspective helps us avoid unnecessary pitfalls.

From the outside looking in, I believe it shows thoughtfulness and fairness, and from the inside looking up, it gives hope and shows opportunity and growth.

In addition, hiring and maintaining a work force has changed dramatically. In order to address a changing work force, we have implemented apprentice programs for skilled positions in the store that come with regular merit increases and increasing responsibilities.

We implemented an employee discount program for weekly shopping and daily work breaks. We encourage our employees in education and offer scholarships and participate in WAFC retail certificate programs and English at work.

We have improved our PTO benefits, revamped our disciplinary procedures and have put HR business partners in the field to work with all employees to address concerns immediately. We’ve reduced turnover and have increased our talent pool and are working on more rewards and work benefits to offer the employees.

As a business leader, can you please share a few steps we must take to truly create an inclusive, representative and equitable society? Kindly share a story or example for each.

I was told my first week on the job that it was a people business, and 42 years later that is just as true as the first time I heard it. In order to truly create that type of society, as a leader you must create paths of opportunity within the company, whether it is a new store opening or a new category to manage or even new technology that will require oversight. You have to be constantly working for that.

Before, during and after those paths are created, you have to be engaging with all people across the company to sell the opportunity and building enthusiasm among the people and really being the cheerleader to encourage them to stretch themselves to take on new roles.

I look for the people that can connect with other people no matter what they look like. If they have a desire to grow and a personality that shows leadership and commitment and compassion, they will succeed if shown the path and given the opportunity.

I have one young man I met the first month I was with Superior. Trayvon Flourney. Great personality, wonderful with people, high integrity, strong work ethic and a genuine fondness for others. I have worked with him over the years and encouraged him try new things. He wanted to grow in the company, and at the time he was a produce manager.

I told him he needed to step out of that role, that I would put him in an apprentice position to learn all the roles within the store. He believed he could do it, I believed he could do it – and we did it. We put him on night crew, put him in bakery, put him in meat departments, worked him on the front end, worked him in center store, had him open the store, had him close the store and worked him in any role we could find.

One year later, we made him a store director, and he just shone through. I remember walking in with ownership to his store. The whole front end had just crashed, and he knew just what to do. A lot of people would have probably faltered in the presence of ownership, but he had the whole thing back up in less than eight minutes.

Twelve months later, a specialist role came up and he applied and was promoted. Two years later, a buyer role came up and we moved him to that role. Then the company grew again and a DM role came up and he was promoted to DM – where he is today – building relationships, creating paths and showing others the way.

Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. Most of our readers – in fact, most people – think they have a pretty good idea of what a CEO or executive does. But in just a few words can you explain what an executive does that is different from the responsibilities of the other leaders?

In my case, it has been to step into more of a strategic mindset and look out for current weaknesses that need to be addressed to keep the business safe and healthy while looking outward for growth opportunities and business trends.

I spend the majority of my time working with the executives on next year’s plan. I work every day on the culture within the company. It may sound corny, but as I walk around the office and I notice an office or a cubicle decorated for someone’s birthday, I stop and sing “Happy Birthday” as loud as I can in order to let them know that it is a special day and I am glad we get to celebrate.

I am a very competitive person, and I drive that competitiveness into the company ad meetings and performance meetings. I think that when someone first comes in it may seem threatening, but we are not trying to play “gotcha” – we are just trying to raise the bar and after a while of being in the group you come to realize we are all just trying to make it a great place to be.

What are myths you would like to dispel about being a CEO or executive?

Sometimes when I introduce myself, people respond, “Oh, you’re the big boss, so everyone has to do what you say.” That can’t be further from the truth. I am fortunate enough to be in the position but realize that I have to do what our team says I have to do, not the other way around.

In most cases, I gather as much information from the team as I can in order to make an informed decision. I usually go into conversations with a pretty strong opinion on what my decision will be, but I want to have others offer their thoughts.

But let’s be honest; when you are in the role of CEO, at least in my experience, you are the last one to know things that are happening, especially bad things. People tend to want to fix things and not let all the laundry out for others to see, and by the time it comes to me it takes a lot more work to correct an unfortunate thing.

I work hard to try and stay out in front of those things. People think that the CEO has it made, but that is not necessarily the truth. Most days I am up at 3:30 a.m., going over emails and checking sales number and department mixes, then I jump into my duolingo to practice my Spanish and then make my way to stores and the office. I walk the DC, start my first meetings at 7 a.m., then finish around 6 p.m., six days a week. I tell people I am not that smart, so I have to work twice as hard to stay ahead of the game.

I remember a funny story that someone told me. They wanted my job so they wouldn’t have to work as hard. I laughed because maybe at a time in my career I had the same thoughts working my way up the ladder.

Now, being in this position, it creates challenges beyond my imagination. My friend Erin from Save Mart told me once, “You need to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes before you criticize them. That way, when you do criticize them, you are a mile away and you have their shoes.”

What is the most striking difference between your actual job and how you thought the job would be?

I always thought that once I was able to achieve this position, I would be in the know on everything in the company and be able to help. That is not the case. I am able to help, but not everyone wants you to know everything that is going on.

Certainly, not everyone is cut out to be an executive. In your opinion, which specific traits increase the likelihood that a person will be a successful executive and what type of person should avoid aspiring to be an executive?

I don’t think there is a type of person that should avoid it. I think it is very rewarding and, if you want it, go for it.

I will say it takes a tremendous amount of time and energy. You have to be a coach, a confidante and disciplinarian more times than you would like, and above all you will always have to be “on.” No dull moments, no downtime and no gaps in things to do.

I think a person will be successful if every day they give it their all, laugh every chance they can and recognize you didn’t get to where you are without a ton of people who helped. And you won’t stay there without people helping you every day.

How have you used your success to make the world a better place?

I have worked to create more jobs, worked with many charities to help children and families in need, communities that need food and water for events, sponsored mobile pet clinics to help with people’s pets and have worked with cities to help them with school or parks equipment.

I was on the board of directors at Olive Crest for some time. I really enjoyed what that organization stands for. Rhonda [Tagge] and her team at Olive Crest make a difference in people’s lives, and I was proud to be a part of that. Superior still participates, and our vice president, Sally Hernandez, sits on the board now and works with them on fundraising events.

In addition, I work with local food coalitions and food banks to make sure food supplies are present all year around, not just in the winter months.

What are your “Five Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me Before I Started”?

1. Always invest in a great pair of shoes. Because if you’re walking and working, if you don’t have a great pair of shoes your day will be miserable from your feet hurting. I learned the hard way.
2. Never vent down, always vent up; there are no secrets in retail.
3. Never get too serious about things; it’s just a grocery store.
4. Record your journey. Looking back on 40 years, I should have taken more photos and recorded more events of the people that influenced my journey the most.
5. You should meet Mimi, because she changed my life.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.

I went to Mimi a year ago with an idea that would cost the company money but really help the community. She didn’t hesitate to say, “Absolutely, let’s try.”

I was watching the news and the schools were out for the summer, and they were saying that kids were going hungry without their school lunches. That really bothered me because I think hunger sucks.

I reached out to the LA schools around a few of our stores and offered to provide 35 to 50 meals to the kids or families they identified as the most needy so that they would at least have a meal during the summer or on the weekends when there was no school.

They haven’t been able to work with us yet because of privacy issues, but we are still working on it and hope to start a pilot program for families or kids in our communities that are hungry.

Can you please give us your favorite “life lesson” quote and share how it’s relevant to you in your life?

“This too shall pass.” Whenever things seem out of control or that the best times or even the worst times are over, I remember that quote and realize nothing is forever and that you need to be consistent and persevere through all of life’s challenges.

We are very blessed that some very prominent names in the food industry will read this. Is there a person in the world, or in the U.S., with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.

Shakira. I need some new dance moves. If she is unavailable, Jeff Bezos.