Bob Sears Named NACS Supplier Board Chairman

ATLANTA -- Bob Sears, director of trade and state relations and training and compliance for Altria Group Distribution Co., will be the 2013-14 chairman of the NACS Supplier Board.

Sears joined Philip Morris USA in 1996 as its director of trade marketing for national accounts. He held a number of positions with increasing responsibility for Philip Morris and Altria before being named to his current position earlier this year. Sears is also a member of the board of directors of the American Wholesale Marketers Association, NATO and the Virginia Capitol Region of the American Red Cross. He earned a B.A. from Syracuse University.

In addition, Joe Vonder Haar, managing partner of iSEE Store Innovations Inc., was named chair-elect and will succeed Sears as 2014-15 NACS Supplier Board chairman.

Vonder Haar is managing partner for iSee Store Innovations. Before founding the company in 2010, he spent 28 years with Anheuser-Busch Inc., retiring as vice president of the convenience store channel. He co-founded iSee Store Innovations in fall 2010. Vonder Haar serves on charity boards for the Education Is Freedom Foundation, Mid-Town Catholic Community Services and the St. Louis Public School Board Foundation.

Sears and Vonder Haar were appointed to their positions during the NACS Supplier Board meeting, held at the NACS Show in Atlanta. The NACS Supplier Board is comprised of individuals from NACS supplier member companies that represent different product and service categories in the convenience store industry.

Also at the meeting, three vice chairmen were elected to the five-member Supplier Board leadership team: Kevin Martello, vice president of convenience for Dr Pepper Snapple Group; Jeff Schouten, director of channel marketing at MillerCoors; and Brad McGuinness, senior vice president of corporate research and development for VeriFone Inc.

In addition, four new members were elected to the Supplier Board: Jeff Blalock, vice president of c-store sales at Flowers Foods Snack Group; Desiree Logsdon, vice president of marketing for Bunn-O-Matic Corp.; Lisa Austin, vice president of sales-convenience with Oberto Brands; and Dustin Snyder, senior vice president of business development for Eby-Brown Co. LLC.