Sunday, December 12, 1999
Miller up for new challenge with Rite Aid
TIPSHEET
The former chief operating officer of Kroger Co. decided to leave the grocery giant last week not because of troubles in foodland, but because he wanted to be The Boss again.
Robert Miller, 55, announced his resignation from Kroger last Monday to head the beleaguered Rite Aid drug store chain. Mr. Miller had been CEO of Fred Meyer Corp. before the company's merger with Kroger in the spring. He became COO and vice chairman of Kroger after the merger.
“I don't want anybody to think I left for any other reason than for an opportunity that was exciting,” Mr. Miller said in an interview last week. “Kroger is a wonderful company. They have a very capable leader in (CEO) Joe Pichler. (But) there's only room for one boss. Joe deserves to be the boss there.”
Several other Fred Meyer division executives, including current CEO Mary Sammons, also left Kroger to join Rite Aid.
Mr. Miller first met Mr. Pichler more than six years ago, when the two, as noncompetitors, shared business information. He said they have a “great relationship.”
At Rite Aid, Mr. Miller said, his first order of business will be to “find the coffee pot.” — Lisa Biank Fasig
Delta spiffs up food fare
Imagine and let your mouth water: Thai shrimp salad with vinaigrette; chicken and Boursin cheese lasagna complemented by a zesty pomodoro (tomato) sauce; and red pepper pesto and shrimp pizza topped with sauteed red onion, corn, scallion and Parmesan cheese.
It's not a posh, trendy new restaurant downtown. It's part of a new menu available to first-class passengers of Delta Air Lines. The new menu, announced in early December, was developed from suggestions by frequent-fliers and intended to improve customer service on Cincinnati's dominant airline.
Don't worry, though. Even those of us in the back of the plane are getting menu upgrades. New selections for economy class include: lemon rosemary marinated chicken breast with balsamic demi-glace; pennini pasta with a chicken meat sauce, topped with mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses; and grilled marinated Omaha steaks top sirloin with Rosti Swiss potatoes and sugar snap peas.
Remember that next time fares go up. — Amy Higgins
Dayton puts $1M to work
“Dayton. The region where great ideas take off.”
That's the tag line for a three-year, $1 million marketing program launched by development leaders in the Ohio city to attract new business.
The program features a Web site — www.daytonregiontakesoff.com — and a “virtual news bureau” to generate publicity across the country.
The New York giant Edelman Public Relations Worldwide and the Flynn, Sabatino & Day advertising agency are doing the creative work; the campaign will be funded by local governments and corporations.
“The Dayton region has the business environment (that) site selectors look for, the quality of life and opportunity many people currently living elsewhere seek in pursuit of their professional and personal success,” said Steve Lake, president of the Dayton Regional Development Alliance. “They just don't know it yet.” — Cliff Peale
Big move for Bank One
The downtown branch of Bank One, a longtime, yet often hard-to-find fixture at 525 Vine St. near Fountain Square, will move into new digs next month.
Bank One plans to relocate Jan. 31 into space at 45 E. Fourth St. that formerly housed a Franklin Savings and Loan branch. Bank One will exit current office space — which sits below a KeyBank branch — Jan. 28. — Jeff McKinney
Items for Tipsheet are gathered by Enquirer business reporters and compiled by Lisa Biank Fasig of the business staff.
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