Geoff White has been tapped to lead the Own Brands business of Albertsons Companies, the Boise, Idaho-based company announced on April 25. Mr. White, who most recently was senior vice-president of marketing and merchandising for the Northern California Division, will be responsible for furthering the growth, development and innovation of the company’s Own Brands products, including O Organics, Lucerne, Open Nature and Signature products.

“Geoff is a visionary merchant who understands the evolution of our company’s Own Brands and the significant role they play in our overall strategy,” said Shane Sampson, executive vice-president and chief marketing and merchandising officer. “Our Own Brand items are integral to how we earn customer loyalty. We’ve developed a nimble process that responds quickly to consumer trends with popular products over the last two years, and I’m excited to see how our team and brands further their development under Geoff’s leadership.”

Mr. White started as a general clerk in Burnaby, British Columbia, in 1981 and held positions of increasing responsibility over the next 17 years, culminating in being named director of Canadian produce operations, where he was responsible for all produce sales, marketing, and merchandising, spanning western Canada with 210 stores. In December 2004, he was named to a group director position at the Safeway corporate office and was eventually promoted to vice-president of produce. In 2010 he was named senior vice-president, and over the next five years led several functions including dairy, frozen, deli/food service, branded concepts, produce and floral. He has been senior vice-president of marketing and merchandising for the Northern California Division since 2015.