CINCINNATI — Gabriel Arreaga has been named senior vice president of supply chain at The Kroger Co., effective Oct. 1. Arreaga will succeed Robert Clark, who will retire on Feb. 1, 2021, after 35 years of service, most recently as senior vice president of supply chain, manufacturing and enterprise sourcing.

As senior vice president of supply chain, Arreaga will be responsible for Kroger’s entire supply chain organization, which includes logistics, inventory and replenishment. Prior to joining Kroger he was senior vice president of supply chain for Mondelez International Inc. Earlier he was global vice president of operations for Stanley Black & Decker and held numerous leadership roles at Unilever, including vice president of food and beverage operations.

“Gabriel’s proven history of outstanding leadership and management of complex supply chain and logistics functions will accelerate our ability to provide a seamless shopping experience for our customers,” said Rodney McMullen, chairman and chief executive officer of Kroger. “We welcome Gabriel and his 22 years of leadership experience in the industry and look forward to adding his fresh perspective and insights to our growing operations.”

Arreaga received a bachelor's degree in business administration from Del Valle University and a master’s degree in business administration from INCAE, a top global MBA program led by Harvard University's curriculum and located in Central America. He also has completed advanced management programs at Harvard University and served as a research assistant for MIT faculty on corporate strategy, among other areas.

Clark will retire in February following a 35-year career with Kroger. He began his career in the Fry's division as a bagger in 1985. He advanced to work in several store, district and division leadership roles for Fry's, including being named vice president of merchandising in 2002. Clark relocated in 2010 to the Columbus division to serve as vice president of operations before moving to the Fred Meyer division in 2011 to take over as vice president of merchandising. He relocated to Kroger's corporate headquarters in Cincinnati in 2013 to take on the role of group vice president of non-perishables. He was promoted to senior vice president of merchandising in 2016 and to his current position in 2019.

“We thank Robert for his 35 years of dedicated service and leadership,” McMullen said. “He’s been an instrumental leader at all levels of our organization and has built collaborative teams and developed business strategies that have advanced our operations and uplifted our associates and customers.”