Dive Brief:
- Save A Lot announced the promotion of Chief Operating Officer Bill Mayo to CEO as the company’s current chief executive, Fred Boehler, steps back from managing day-to-day operations, according to a Monday press release.
- The company noted that Boehler will remain in an active advisory role to both Mayo and Save A Lot’s board of directors over the coming months.
- Mayo, who joined the discount grocery company back in March 2024 and quickly climbed the ranks, will now see Save A Lot through its next growth phase.
Dive Insight:
Mayo is taking over the helm of Save A Lot after less than two years with the discounter as Boehler’s nearly two-year stint as CEO comes to a close. Save A Lot did not specify why Boehler is stepping back.
Prior to joining Save A Lot, Mayo spent nearly 30 years at Wakefern Food Corp. in a number of leadership roles, including senior vice president of perishables and technology; SVP of logistics, technology and engineering; and chief administrative officer, per his LinkedIn profile.
Just seven months after joining Save A Lot in 2024, Mayo stepped into an expanded role as COO to oversee marketing and merchandising in addition to leading the operations team.
Boehler credited Mayo with playing a key role in “resetting the company’s go-forward strategy and reclaiming Save A Lot’s value and retail leadership as both a wholesaler and operator,” adding that Mayo is the “right leader” for the company’s next phase of growth.
Boehler has been a Save A Lot board member since summer 2021 and was appointed interim CEO following Leon Bergmann’s exit in late 2023. The company tapped Boehler to serve as the interim CEO and then named him permanent CEO in December 2023.
Vying among several grocery discounters that are rapidly expanding their U.S. store fleets, Save A Lot has recently turned to store remodels and new formats, including a Hispanic-focused one, to help it stand out. In 2024, Save A Lot said it aimed to triple its store count from nearly 800 stores to 3,000 within the next few years.
