Dive Brief:
- Food Lion has named Meg Ham as president, following the unexpected resignation of Beth Newlands Campbell.
- The Salisbury, NC-based retailer said Campbell was stepping aside immediately for personal and professional reasons, but provided no further information.
- Ham is a veteran of parent company Delhaize America, serving most recently as president of its Bottom Dollar chain.
Dive Insight:
It's tough to say what's behind this latest shift at Food Lion. First, Ham will be the third chief at the supermarket chain within two years. Even in the fast-changing retail business, that's unusual.
Second, and most troubling, Campbell was only a half year or so into rolling out a massive rebranding effort in which all 1,100 stores in the Food Lion chain would morph into something a bit more health-focused and generally upscale than in the past. Campbell's departure can perhaps be read as a sign that Delhaize isn't happy with the pace of that change, or perhaps has decided that such a change isn't wise.