CHICAGO -- CSP announced the winners of its fourth annual Category Manager of the Year (CMOY) awards this past week during Convenience Retailing University in Orlando.
These category crusaders were recognized for tackling issues as varied as new product placement and retail disruption to keep their convenience-store chains on track to grow sales.
For the fourth year in a row, CSP awarded its winners during a full general session at the CRU conference. Sponsored by Altria Group Distribution Co., the ceremony celebrated champions in six core categories and a new multiple categories segment.
“This year’s winner was a great variety of longtime industry stalwarts and relatively new category managers who have brought new ideas and energy to their product categories,” said CSP Content Director Steve Holtz, who handed out the awards along with Krister Hampton, manager of trade relations for Altria Group. “We congratulate the winners for keeping the c-store industry on the cutting edge of product selection while embracing the consumer favorites that keep customers coming back again and again.”
For the awards, industry suppliers nominated potential finalists in summer 2018 and, under the direction of CSP editors, three finalists from each of the seven key categories were chosen. The final voting process took place in February and closed one week prior to the start of CRU. The winners received the coveted CMOY trophy and will be featured in a special section of CSP’s2019Category Management Handbook this summer.
CSP’s 2019 Category Manager of the Year winners are:
| Category | Winner | Company |
|---|---|---|
| Candy | Andrew Lee | 7-Eleven Inc. |
| Foodservice | Jerome Hunsinger | Wawa Inc. |
| General merchandise/HBC | Kelley Gutierrez | MAPCO |
| Multiple categories | Ruth Ann Lilly | GPM Investments (Fas Mart) |
| Packaged beverages | Dana Sump | Casey's General Stores |
| Snacks | Ryan Morton | Maverik Inc. |
| Tobacco/OTP | Brian Tisdale | Pilot Flying J |
CSP magazine is the leading source of information for the $600 billion convenience-retailing industry. Our award-winning editors provide actionable solutions and data-driven trends to key decision-makers who rely on this information to make to combat disruption. CSP annually hosts Convenience Retailing University and the Outlook Leadership conference which are two large-scale leadership events, as well as 15 small format meetings in our EduNetworking series. Our team also delivers insights via our print publications, website, and daily newsletters. Click here for more information.
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