Big Y Foods named Eric Swensen as vice president of fresh foods and Christian D’Amour as district sales and merchandising mentor.
As vice president of fresh foods, Swensen is responsible for developing strategies and team support for sales, marketing and merchandising for all fresh foods departments for the entire chain, including all fresh meat, seafood, bakery, deli, produce, floral and meal solutions departments throughout each store.
Swensen began his career with Big Y in 1985 as a part-time service clerk. He moved on to clerk in grocery and then frozen foods and dairy before being promoted to full time grocery night crew in 1987.
From there, he held the positions of night crew manager and grocery manager by 1992. Two years later, he was accepted into the store manager training program and was appointed assistant store manager in the Big Y World Class Market in Worcester, Mass.
By 1997, Swensen was appointed to store manager, a position he held in Big Y’s in Mansfield, CT, as well as Palmer, Worcester, East Longmeadow and Springfield, MA, stores. In 2006, he was selected as a sales and merchandising assistant for one of the chain’s districts, which included 14 stores as part of Big Y’s operations team. By 2006, he was appointed manager of space management as he was responsible for all shelf space allocations for the entire chain.
In 2009, Swensen was appointed director of frozen and dairy. In 2012, he became senior director of center store and in 2014, vice president of center store where he developed strategies and tactical direction, planning and support for all grocery, dairy, frozen food, health and beauty care, general merchandise, pharmacy, retail pricing, space management and store brand departments.
In addition, he holds a HIPPA certification in food safety and has attended the University of Connecticut. He has volunteered for many store community activities as part of that team.
D’Amour has been appointed the sales and merchandising mentor for Big Y’s supermarket district within Hampden, Hampshire, Franklin and Berkshire Counties of Massachusetts.
In his role, D’Amour is responsible for all sales, merchandising and store team development across all departments for these 13 supermarket locations. In addition, he will continue to oversee the operations of the company’s Table & Vine, fine wine, spirits, beer and specialty foods flagship in West Springfield, Mass. He reports to Sean S. Nimmons, district director.
D’Amour began his career at Big Y at the age of 14 as a service clerk. After graduating from college, he was a sales and marketing representative for an insurance company based in Providence, R.I., before re-joining Big Y as a store director trainee in 2014.
One year later, he was appointed assistant store director in their Wilbraham World Class Market before being assigned store director in its Southampton store later that same year. In 2017, he was appointed store director back in Wilbraham before being named store director of the Table & Vine flagship location.
He is also the grandson of Big Y’s co-founder, Gerald D’Amour, and son of president and CEO, Charles D’Amour.
