SALINAS VALLEY — Anna Graham was named one of Progressive Grocer magazine’s “Top Women in Grocery” in its annual list for 2020.
Graham, who is a Greenfield resident and a store director at Foods Co #387 in Soledad, was among the 350 women recognized in the nationwide list. As part of her selection, she was featured in Progressive Grocer magazine, recognizing female executives, store managers and rising stars in the nation’s grocery industry.
Graham was honored in the Store Leader category for demonstrating outstanding leadership in her company and store.
“Anna is an outstanding associate,” said Bryan Kaltenbach, Food 4 Less/Foods Co president. “She is an accomplished member of our team and an exceptional store leader. Anna has done great at every position she’s held and every job she’s been assigned. She is well-deserving of the Progressive Grocer honor.”
Graham oversees the high-volume Soledad store with more than 90 associates. In 2019, she drove her store to top sales and customer service scores.
Food 4 Less also credited Graham with having a great passion for people and community, which they said was evident in the strong connection she has with her associates and the many partnerships she has formed between her store and local schools, charities and civic groups.
The company called her a “high-potential store leader.”
Soledad Foods Co serves a mostly farmworker community in California’s Salinas Valley.
With Graham leading the charge, Foods Co has reached out to support the unique needs of the community her store serves by partnering with the Soledad Police Department on its National Night Out and Holiday Giving Tree events; donating fresh fruits and vegetables to help with the Soledad Medical Clinic’s Harvest Fresh Prescription event; supporting the local school district’s 4-H program; donating pumpkins for autistic students to carve and decorate at Halloween; and providing product and volunteers to support the Salvation Army’s annual Thanksgiving and Christmas food distribution events.
“We’re very proud of Anna for the critical role she plays in our company, in her store and in the community,” Kaltenbach said.
Progressive Grocer’s Top Women in Grocery is a community that has grown since 2007. The magazine continues to add honorees in recognition of the contribution women make to strengthen the retail food industry at all levels, from both the retailer and supplier communities.
