Bashas’ Family of Stores has hired Barry Craft as VP of marketing, merchandising and procurement for more than 100 grocery stores in Arizona. After a transition period, Craft will take over responsibilities from Phil Hawkes, a longtime Bashas’ veteran who is retiring.
Craft comes to Bashas’ with a supermarket background in merchandising, marketing and category management. With leadership roles at regional retailers in the Southeast and Texas, he has earned recognition as a developer of new brands, private labels and the largest consumer baby expo in the world.
“Barry brings almost 40 years of experience in the supermarket industry, with a notable track record of generating sales and margin growth,” said Edward “Trey” Basha, president of Bashas’ Family of Stores. “He has built and maintained excellent relationships within the organizations he has worked for, as well as with the vendor community, and this business philosophy makes him an ideal fit for our Basha’s leadership team.”
Craft’s career began with a Winn-Dixie Retail Career Scholarship directly out of high school. He then spent 10 years at Bruno’s Inc., opening a new market for the company in Tennessee and later serving as district manager over multiple formats in metropolitan Birmingham, Alabama. Craft then joined SGSM Acquisition Group as director of retail operations, overseeing the Schwegmann Supermarket chain in New Orleans and later maintaining the chain’s operational value through divestiture.
He spent the next 16 years at H-E-B in Texas serving as unit director/team leader, senior business development manager and director of merchandising. After a year as VP of sales for a juvenile products manufacturer, Craft rejoined the grocery industry with a position at Fiesta Supermarkets, where he led the center store category management team prior to taking on a new role as director of pricing/business integration.
Craft is relocating from the Houston area to Chandler, Arizona, the company’s home city.
Bashas’ is a family-owned grocer that operates Food City, AJ’s Fine Foods, Eddie’s Country Store, Bashas’ and Bashas’ Diné supermarkets. It was founded in 1932 by brothers Ike and Eddie Basha Sr. With more than 100 grocery stores, it is one of the largest employers in Arizona.
