GMDC awards Lifetime Achievement honor to retired Kroger exec

PHOENIX — The Global Market Development Center on Monday announced its 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award recipient: Terry Cox, retired group VP for Kroger.

GMDC annually bestows its prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award upon a person who has contributed significantly to the general merchandise or health/beauty/wellness industries, as well as to GMDC through his or her leadership. Cox, who retired as group VP drug/GM merchandising and procurement at Kroger in 2001, acknowledged the importance of the relationships that Kroger developed through its support of GMDC, and he considered his participation to be an integral part of his successful retail career.

"Terry brought terrific leadership to both GMDC and our industry throughout his years of involvement with the association. His thought leadership was extremely valuable, and as a GMDC board member, he had a great talent for listening to the concerns of everyone and doing what was best for the industry at large," stated GMDC CEO and president Dave McConnell.

Cox joined Kroger in 1962 as a part-time clerk in Columbus, Ohio. He held a variety of merchandising positions in several Kroger retail divisions before becoming director of marketing in the company's grocery merchandising department in 1987. In 1989, Cox was named president of Peyton's, Kroger's drug and general merchandise procurement and distribution subsidiary. Later that year, he was promoted to VP drug/GM merchandising. Cox was promoted to group VP in 1999.

“I can’t think of a better organization than GMDC to receive an award like this from,” Cox said when receiving his award. “I learned more about the industry and how my company was perceived than I ever could as a result of joining GMDC. This means a lot. Thanks from the bottom of my heart.”