Oser Communications Group

GOURMET NEWS MAY 2015 www.gourmetnews.com GENERAL NEWS 7 McCormick & Company, Incorporated has appointed Nneka Rimmer to the role of Sr. Vice President of Cor- porate Strategy & Development effective March 16, 2015, report- ing to Alan D. Wilson, Chairman and CEO. In this new role, Rimmer is re- sponsible for shaping overall cor- porate strategy and development activities to achieve company objectives. Her core re- sponsibilities include providing strategic direction for mergers and acquisitions, overseeing internal and external research activities including qualitative and quanti- tative research methods, consumer in- sights, demographic studies and competi- tive market intelligence. This position will help McCormick fulfill its long- term growth needs while strengthen- ing its competitive leverage in an expanding marketplace. Prior to McCormick, Rimmer was a Partner and Managing Director with the Boston Consulting Group where she spent more than 13 years. She has over 10 years of experience in designing, execut- ing, and leveraging successful large-scale transformation initiatives, working with large global consumer goods corporations. Her global corporate expertise includes competitive strategy, international growth strategy with focus on Russia, India and China, trade strategy, go-to-market strategy and organizational development. She was also an executive coach at Northwestern University. Rimmer began her career with Motorola in the Semiconductor Products Sector. She was a product development consultant for the George Group and a strategy consult- ant for EthnicGrocer.com. Rimmer holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engi- neering from Stanford University, an MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Man- agement at Northwestern University and a JD from Northwestern University School of Law. GN McCormick Names Nneka Rimmer as Sr. Vice President San Francisco Institution and award-win- ning baked goods producer, Just Desserts, will open a new, 75,000 square-foot manu- facturing facility in Fairfield, California this month. The plant, which includes some ad- ministrative offices, will take over produc- tion from the company's previous facility in Oakland. Just Desserts will maintain a pres- ence in San Francisco, retaining its innova- tion center – including the company's test kitchen – and some administrative offices. "Our business enjoyed double digit growth in 2014 through the introduction of our new organic and vegan product offer- ings," says Michael J. Mendes, CEO of Just Desserts. "With the introduction of new products, our new proprietary-packaging platform and expanded production facility, we expect accelerated growth in the future." The company, which produces cakes, in- cluding single serve cakes; cupcakes, and brownie and cake bites, is moving from Oakland because of its need for a larger fa- cility. The Fairfield site is double the size of Just Desserts' current bakery in Oakland. It has been designed and equipped to handle the company's new organic and premium vegan baked items and will have enhanced production capabilities, as well as an in- house quality control laboratory. Mendes says the company conducted an exhaustive search for a new site, scouting out possible locations as far away as Ne- vada and Texas. "We chose Fairfield be- cause of the value of real estate, the city's business-friendly environment, and the fact that the transportation lanes are attractive for shipping and transporting product," says Mendes. "We also found that the ac- cess to skilled workers in the area is well- suited to our needs." At full production, Just Desserts estimates it will create over 100 new jobs at the Fairfield facility. "We are pleased that Just Desserts will be joining our community of top food and beverage companies that have found a sweet spot in Fairfield," says Ken Cantrell, Senior Economic Development Project Manager with Fairfield's economic develop- ment department. "We have attracted com- panies because of our commitment to building a strong infrastructure that in- cludes an ample supply of water and a state-of-the-art wastewater system." GN Just Desserts Doubles Production Space with Move to Fairfield, California ALDI has completed its purchase of 66 real estate assets from the Delhaize Group. The transaction includes the land, buildings and leasehold improvements associated with Delhaize's recently retired Bottom Dol- lar Food operation. "ALDI has been offering fresh, afford- able groceries in Pennsylvania and South- ern New Jersey communities for 20 years. With the completion of this real estate transaction, we are able to ramp up our expansion plans in the region to meet the growing demand for the ALDI difference: high-quality groceries at everyday low prices in an easy-to-shop store," said Jason Hart, CEO, ALDI. "While we are ex- cited to pursue opening ALDI stores at 30 of these locations, we will continue work- ing with those communities where we will not be using the sites to ensure a smooth transition." In December 2013, ALDI embarked on an accelerated growth plan to open 650 new stores by the end of 2018, with the goal of operating nearly 2,000 stores across the country. ALDI also is planning to invest more than $3 billion to pay for land, facili- ties and equipment. When the expansion is complete, ALDI will have stores coast-to- coast and anticipates serving more than 45 million customers per month. The expan- sion is expected to create more than 10,000 new jobs at ALDI stores, warehouses and division offices. "At ALDI, we are committed to being an employer of choice as we know the signif- icant contributions that our people add to the business by providing excellent service day after day," said Hart. "To attract and re- tain the best talent, we are proud to offer our employees generous compensation that is higher than those of other grocery retail- ers in the market. In addition, associates working at least 25 hours per week receive full health benefits, and all ALDI employees are invited to participate in our 401(k) pro- gram." Growth is accelerating at ALDI due to the appeal of its unique business model that lets smart shoppers save up to 50 per- cent on more than 1,300 of the most com- monly purchased grocery items, including more than 70 varieties of fresh fruits and vegetables, including organic produce. In fact, ALDI has been recognized as the na- tion's low-price grocery leader for four con- secutive years, as well as one of the top three favorite grocery store chains in Amer- ica, according to consumer surveys. "Not only are we growing our geographic footprint, but we're expanding our product offerings as well. We continue to increase our healthy food and on-trend options, in- cluding fresh produce, USDA choice meats, dairy products and baked goods, along with our new SimplyNature line that in- cludes several organic items, and our liveG- free line of gluten-free products," added Hart. "With everything ALDI has to offer, it's no surprise to us that more and more people are discovering that they don't have to sacrifice quality and taste to save money by shopping at ALDI." ALDI generates savings for its customers through a low-overhead approach that fo- cuses on offering high quality, premium products and includes cost-saving meas- ures such as volume purchasing, house brand products and special buys as well as a streamlined approach that avoids non-es- sential services such as banking, pharma- cies, check cashing and bagging clerks. Those savings result in lower prices for consumers. GN ALDI Completes Purchase of Delhaize Group's Bottom Dollar Food Real Estate Sites

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