ALEXANDRIA, Va-- Bill Douglass, CEO of Sherman, Texas-based Douglass Distributing Co., leads the slate of new officers that was elected by National Association of Convenience Stores' board of directors last week in Naples, Fla. As NACS' newly elected vice chairman and treasurer, Douglass will succeed Stan Sheetz as NACS Chairman of the Board for a term that will commence in October 2004.
Also elected to the NACS Executive Committee were Jay Ricker, president of Anderson, IN-based Ricker Oil Co., who will serve as NACS vice chairman of industry relations; Sam Turner, president of Dalton, Ga.-based Calfee Co. of Dalton, Inc. , who will serve as NACS vice chairman of government relations; and Scott Hartman, president of York, Penn.-based CHR Corp., who will serve a second term as NACS vice chairman of research and development. Stan Sheetz, president and CEO of Altoona, Pa.-based Sheetz, Inc., will be NACS 2003 chairman of the board. The NACS Executive Committee board members will assume their new positions following the 2003 NACS Show, which runs from October 11-14 in Chicago.
Douglass is currently a member of NACS Executive Committee as vice chairman of government relations. He is CEO of Douglass Distributing Co., which operates convenience stores and petroleum-marketing locations. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and as a U.S. Army officer, Douglass also worked with Exxon Corp. prior to founding Douglass Distributing. Douglass is also a member of the Texas Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Stores Association.
Ricker will lead the efforts of NACS Industry Relations Committee, which sets the strategic direction for NACS with regard to retail-membership value, according to the association. The committee works to develop education and training programs and provides a conduit and forum for the exchange of ideas and resources. In addition to his service with NACS, Ricker is a past president of the Indiana Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association.
Turner will lead the efforts of NACS Government Relations Board Committee, which directs the government-relations activities of NACS, represents the industry on legislative and regulatory issues, and has responsibility for NACSPAC, the association’s political action committee. Turner has been with Calfee Co. since 1981. He is a past president and current member of the Georgia Association of Convenience Stores.
In his second term as the NACS vice president of research and development, Hartman will oversee NACS’ Research and Development Committee, which directs the association's initiatives and programs in research and development to promote the ongoing competitive viability of the channel. He previously served as chairman of both the NACS Technology Committee and Technology Standards Steering Committee.
Hartman is the third generation of his family to operate the company. His family began farming in 1747; it is one of the oldest continuously operated family farms in the U.S. According to NACS, Hartman's grandfather, George Rutter, and his brother, Bud, started the dairy in 1921, which now distributes products to Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and the District of Columbia. The second generation, which included Hartman's father, Stew Hartman (George Rutter's son-in-law), started Rutter's Farm Stores in 1968.
Hartman previously worked as a senior manager consultant at Price Waterhouse before taking his current position at CHR. He has a bachelor's degree in business administration from George Washington University, a master's degree in business administration from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business, and is a certified public accountant.
Sheetz is president and CEO of Sheetz, Inc., founded in 1952 by his father, Bob Sheetz. The family business is ranked 168 on Forbes' 500 list of top private companies. Sheetz is currently serving as NACS vice chairman/treasurer.
After earning a bachelor's degree in business management from Bentley College and a master's degree in financial management from Pace University, Sheetz worked for three New York City corporations before returning to the family business in 1981. Sheetz served as director of finance, and then vice president of operations prior to being named president and CEO in 1995.