Jay Ricker & Rick Brindle Selected for CSNews Hall of Fame Induction
NEWARK, N.J. — Jay Ricker, chairman of Ricker Oil Co., and Rick Brindle, vice president of industry development for Mondelēz International Inc., have been selected as the 2018 inductees into the Convenience Store News Hall of Fame.
The newest Hall of Famers, along with the 2018 Convenience Store News Retailer Executive of the Year (to be announced next week), will be honored at a gala banquet and induction ceremony this fall in Indianapolis, near the Anderson, Ind., headquarters of Ricker Oil, operator of 56 Ricker’s convenience stores.
Over the past 31 years, the CSNews Hall of Fame has recognized c-store industry pioneers and innovators from retailer and supplier companies of all sizes. Hall of Famers are selected by a 50-member blue ribbon panel of top convenience store industry executives, as well as past retailer and supplier Hall of Fame inductees.
Past retailer inductees have included Scott Hartman of Rutter’s; Dick Wood of Wawa Inc.; Carl Bolch Jr. of RaceTrac Petroleum Inc.; Dean Durling of QuickChek Corp.; Don Zietlow of Kwik Trip Inc.; Chester and Chet Cadieux of QuikTrip Corp., and Steve and Stan Sheetz of Sheetz Inc. Last year’s inductee was Joe DePinto of 7-Eleven Inc.
Past inductees into the supplier wing of the Hall of Fame have included Dave Riser of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.; Jerry Rose and Steve Brady of McLane Co. Inc.; Joe Burke and Jay Ard of The Coca-Cola Co.; Greg Gilkerson of PDI Inc.; Robert Sears of Altria Group Distribution Co.; Bob Johnson of Pinnacle Corp., and Tom Joyce of The Hershey Co. Last year’s supplier inductee was Blake Benefiel of Altria Group Distribution Co.
ABOUT THIS YEAR’S HONOREES
Ricker is currently chairman of the Fuels Institute. He also serves on the board of directors of Conner Prairie Living History Museum, and the Community Hospital Anderson. In the past, Ricker has chaired NACS, the Association for Convenience & Fuel Retailing, BP Marketers Association, Indiana Petroleum and Convenience Store Association, Community Hospital Anderson and Conner Prairie Museum.
A graduate of Purdue University, Ricker worked for Shell Oil for seven years. He and his wife Nancy started their own business in 1979, with her running the office from their home and him driving the tank wagon. They have two children, Quinn and Laine, as well as five grandchildren.
Brindle currently serves as vice chairman of the NACS Supplier Board. He has led industry development for Mondelēz International (USA) since 2012. His business development leadership assignments have spanned the grocery, club, e-tailing and mass merchandiser classes of trade, with responsibility for such retailers and wholesalers as Walmart, Supervalu, Safeway, Costco, Giant Foods, Peapod, FreshDirect.com and Amazon.com.
As one of the industry’s more enduring veterans in online grocery retailing, Brindle developed and led Nabisco’s Global eSales efforts from 1997 until his most recent assignment. At one point, the Nabisco Global eSales Team worked with more than 60 online retailers across the globe. In June 2006, Consumer Goods Technology magazine recognized Brindle as one of the “CPG Industry’s 20 Top Visionaries.”
He has been in the packaged goods industry since 1977. During his career, he also held leadership positions within Kraft Foods, Nabisco, Procter & Gamble, and Safeway Food Stores.