LAS VEGAS-- NACS has named Lucia Romanello Crater, vice president of retail sales for Cardtronics Inc., as 2012-13 chairman of the NACS Supplier Board. In addition, the association named Bob Sears, director of trade and state relations for Altria Group Distribution Co., as chair-elect; he will succeed Crater as 2013-14 chairman.
Crater and Sears were named to their positions during the NACS Supplier Board meeting at the 2012 NACS Show in Las Vegas.
Crater joined Cardtronics in April 2011. Before that, she spent nine years at US Nutrition, the last three years as director of sales. Crater has been active in NACS since 1989, and she was a founding member and executive committee member of the Network of Executive Women (NEW).
"Respected within the convenience store industry and trusted by the far-reaching retailer and supplier communities, Lucia Romanello Crater embodies the leadership which sets Cardtronics apart amongst ATM service providers," said Rick Updyke, president of the U.S. Business Group for Cardtronics. "To her credit, Lucia's ascendance to chairman of NACS Supplier Board personifies the dedication and commitment with which Cardtronics serves both the convenience store and larger retailer communities."
Houston-based Cardtronics owns and operates more than 61,200 retail ATMs in the United States and worldwide for convenience and other retailers.
Sears joined Philip Morris USA, now based in Richmond, Va., in 1996 as its director of trade marketing for national accounts. He has held a number of increasingly responsible positions for Philip Morris and Altria before being named to his current position earlier this year. Sears is a member of the board of directors of American Wholesale Marketers Association (AWMA), National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO) and Virginia Capitol Region of the American Red Cross.
NACS also elected three vice chairpersons to the five-member Supplier Board leadership team:
- Kevin Martello, director of convenience, Dr Pepper Snapple Group., Plano, Texas.
- Wendy Redmond, director of sales-convenience format, Snyder's-Lance Inc., Charlotte, N.C.
- Joseph Vonder Haar, managing partner, iSEE Store Innovations Inc., St. Louis.
In addition, the group elected six new members to the NACS Supplier Board:
- Stephen Brady, vice president of convenience and military, McLane Co. Inc., Temple , Texas.
- Shultz Hartgrove III, senior vice president of development for convenience and nontraditional, Quiznos Sub, Denver.
- Drew Mize, COO, The Pinnacle Corp., Arlington,, Texas.
- Tim Quinn, vice president of trade development, Mars Chocolate North America LLC, Hackettstown, N.J.
- Michael Stipetic, sales manager, west, BIC Corp., Shelton, Conn.
- Terry Thomas, general manager and vice president of PepsiCo sales, drug, dollar and convenience for PepsiCo Inc., Purchase, N.Y.
The NACS Supplier Board is comprised of individuals from NACS supplier member companies that represent different product and service categories in the convenience store industry.
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