Associated Wholesale Grocers (AWG) has appointed Joe Kelley as COO, effective May 4.
Kelley will oversee merchandising, procurement, distribution, sales, marketing and division support center operations across AWG’s 33-state footprint.
Kelley joins from Kroger, where he most recently served as SVP of retail divisions, leading 11 divisions across the central and western United States. His grocery career began as a deli clerk in Boston and has since spanned strategic leadership roles across retail operations, merchandising and supply chain in independently-owned, private equity-backed and publicly traded companies.
His resume includes president of King Soopers & City Market in Denver, president of Kroger Texas in Houston, president of Stop & Shop (an Ahold Delhaize company) and CEO and president of Marsh Supermarkets. He has also held senior leadership roles at Albertsons, Price Chopper Supermarkets in New York and Bozzuto’s.
“Joe brings a rare combination of deep operational expertise, strategic vision and a true understanding of our members’ needs now and in the future,” said Dan Funk, president and CEO of AWG. “His leadership experience with successful regional and national chains will be invaluable as we continue building momentum for our members and advancing our long-term strategic plan.”
The COO role is structured to align AWG’s core operational functions under a single leader, designed to strengthen end-to-end performance and accelerate progress toward the cooperative’s North Star Strategic Plan priorities: members, growth, productivity and people.
Kelley will spend his first several months visiting AWG’s nine support centers, meeting with member retailers and engaging with teams across the cooperative.
“I’m honored to join AWG and support the independent grocers who serve as the backbone of communities across the country,” Kelley said. “I look forward to working with the AWG team and our members to build on the cooperative’s strong foundation and drive continued growth and success.”
The hire adds a leader with direct experience operating large retail divisions to a cooperative that reported $12.2 billion in consolidated sales in 2025 and serves 1,100 member companies and 3,500 retail locations. Kelley’s background running both regional chains and national division operations positions him to bridge the gap between large-scale supply chain efficiency and the localized execution AWG’s independent members depend on.
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