Giant Eagle names interim CEO Bill Artman as permanent chief executive

After five months of serving as the interim chief executive of Giant Eagle Inc., Bill Artman has been named to the position permanently.

Artman took over leadership of the O’Hara-based grocer in late March, replacing Laura Shapira Karet, who had been at the helm for 11 years. Artman, a long-time employee, is the first non-family member to head the grocery chain since its founding in 1931.

During his nearly 40-year tenure with the company, Artman has served in various executive leadership roles, including president of supermarkets, executive vice president and senior vice president of retail operations.

“Bill already has made a tremendous impact in his interim role, giving the board confidence that he is the right leader to take Giant Eagle to new heights. We are pleased to officially welcome him as CEO,” Bart Friedman, chair of the company’s board of directors, said in a statement.

“Over the past five months, Bill has established a new business strategy and assembled a strong executive leadership team comprised of an accomplished group of professionals with decades of relevant experience who have both a keen understanding of the company’s unique standing as a multi-format retailer and a strong vision for its future,” Friedman said.

In an interview with the Tribune-Review, Artman said Giant Eagle would relaunch its weekly circular in Pittsburgh and Cleveland and reintroduce Price Lock promotion to reduce prices on items. The company also rolled out an employee perks and discount pilot program.

Walmart and Giant Eagle together collected nearly half of the grocery dollars in the region last year. Despite Giant Eagle being a locally based grocer, Walmart has been grabbing a larger share of consumers’ budgets, according to data from Chain Store Guide, an industry analytics firm.

“We’re looking forward to raising our game,” Artman told the Tribune-Review in May.

Artman said his focus in his new role is to think “like our customers, not for our customers.”

“My focus is, and always has been, on delivering for our customers and neighborhoods in which we operate, while providing the support our team members need so they can deliver the best experience possible for our customers no matter how they choose to shop with us,” he said.

Giant Eagle was founded by five families — Goldstein, Porter, Chait, Moravitz and Weizenbaum — in 1931. The first Giant Eagle supermarket opened on Brownsville Road in 1936. The chain now has more than 470 grocery and GetGo convenience stores in Western Pennsylvania, Ohio and northern West Virginia.