The New Jersey Food Council is presenting an all-star panel of industry experts to tackle the “New World Order: Digital & Data” on Sept. 9-10 at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
The keynote speaker will be Gary Hawkins, founder and CEO of the Center for Advancing Retail & Technology, who will be discussing new business models in the supermarket industry that leverage the latest technologies and capabilities.
“Gone are the days of understanding your competition through comparing ad prices, periodic price checks and occasional market surveys and store visits,” Hawkins said. “The digital and physical worlds of retail are crashing together, and some new industry entrants don’t even have stores.”
“This Trade Relations Conference is something special. It will directly address many of the issues members are now facing with a provocative program that will take on the revolution of our disrupted industry. There’s no doubt food industry executives will want to attend this year’s in-person conference, featuring some of the most talented experts who are discussing the latest digital challenges to ensure the industry’s continued growth and success,” NJFC President Linda Doherty said.
The event will include a panel discussion, featuring:
- Caroline Masullo, VP of e-commerce and marketing for Peapod Digital Labs, an Ahold Delhaize company. Masullo is widely known as a thought leader for strategic vision and methodologies to deliver profitable omni-channel and e-commerce marketing programs for all Ahold Delhaize USA’s local brands, such as Stop & Shop, Food Lion and Giant Food. She partners with grocery brands to develop e-commerce marketing campaigns. Prior to her role with Peapod Digital Labs, Masullo led digital engagement for TGIFriday’s and McDonalds. She also spent eight years at Yum! Brands in Dallas, where she ran all of Pizza Hut’s e-commerce platforms.
- Robert Jablonski, manager of grocery partnerships for DoorDash. Jablonski leads key enterprise grocery partnerships and advises on all matters that pertain to digital strategy and last-mile fulfillment. Prior to DoorDash, Jablonski worked in category strategy (health, beauty and wellness) at Walmart e-commerce. Jablonski joined Walmart e-commerce via the sale of Jet.com in 2016. Prior to Jet.com, Jablonski served as a knowledge analyst in the financial services practice of Russell Reynolds Associates.
- Ron Onorato, president and COO of Inserra Supermarkets. Onorato has more than 40 years industry experience. He joined Inserra Supermarkets in March of 2015. Previously, Onorato was part of Ahold USA, an international group of supermarkets based throughout the U.S. and Europe and served as the president of the New York Division of Stop & Shop. He was the recipient of the Modern Grocer’s annual Publisher’s Award for Lifetime Achievement and was named Connecticut Food Association’s “Person of the Year.”
In other news, the NJFC’s Max Stone Trade Relations Award is being renamed this year and will now be known as the Jimmy Ostling Trade Relations Award. Ostling retired from Bimbo Bakeries this year and has been a leader of NJFC’s Trade Relations Committee.
The first winner of the Ostling Award is Gary Capozzi, a key account manager for ShopRite with Pepsi Beverages Co. He started his career in the grocery industry at 14 years old with Pathmark, where he worked for seven years. He has been in the beverage industry for 30 years, four years with Canada Dry and 26 years with Pepsi.
As is tradition, the conference will conclude with a Curtain Closer golf event. This year, it will be held for the first time at Seaview Pines in Galloway, New Jersey.
