WESTWOOD, MA, 2015-9-1 — /EPR Retail News/ — Wegmans Food Markets today announced the management team of its newest store, located at 169 University Avenue in Westwood. The team has nearly 120 combined years of experience at Wegmans, and includes the Store Manager, Executive Chef, Pharmacy Manager and Area Managers who will each oversee various departments within the store.
The Westwood store celebrates its grand opening on Sunday, October 11, and is currently hiring and training new employees for a variety of part-time customer service, culinary, and restaurant positions.
Wegmans will host open interviews from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, September 10 through Saturday, September 12 at its 685 Canton Street employment office in Westwood.
“We are proud to introduce the members of our management team to the Westwood community. Together, they bring a long track record of commitment to incredible customer service and the skills to provide an outstanding shopping experience,” said Marybeth Stewart, human resources manager of Wegmans’ New England division. “We encourage those who are interested in joining our team to apply, attend our open interviews in September, or visit us online to learn more.”
The management team for Wegmans Westwood is as follows:
Dave Orlovsky, store manager
Orlovsky, a Shrewsbury resident, has been a part of the Wegmans family for more than 25 years. He first joined as a customer service employee in the prepared foods department in Johnson City, NY. In 1995, Orlovsky joined the company’s management training program and soon became the produce manager of the Elmira, NY, store. He rose from produce manager to assistant store manager, and was later promoted to store manager. Orlovsky moved to Massachusetts in 2013 to be the store manager at Wegmans in Northborough. Two years later, he was given the opportunity to open and manage the Westwood location. In this role, Orlovsky will lead 550 employees to provide the first-class customer service Wegmans is known for.
Brendan Newhart, executive chef
Newhart, who lives in Hopedale, began his career with Wegmans in Rochester, NY as a team leader five years ago. In 2011, he relocated to New England as a sous chef at the Northborough store. Chef Newhart rose through the ranks and is now the executive chef who will oversee Wegmans’ prepared foods in Westwood. With more than sixteen years of restaurant and hotel experience, along with a degree in Culinary Arts and Service Management, Newhart will lead a team of over 140 culinary professionals to deliver on Wegmans’ promise of the freshest ingredients and restaurant-quality meals.
Frank Fields, perishable area manager
Fields, a resident of Providence, began working at Wegmans in 2000 and has served in a number of roles, including service team leader, restaurant manager and service area manager. As the perishable area manager in Westwood, he will oversee the perishable departments of the store (bakery, seafood, meat, cheese, etc.), ensuring product freshness, merchandising, and employee development to help Wegmans customers make great meals easy.
Alicia Elliott, service area manager
Elliott resides in Marlborough and has been with Wegmans since 1980. She’s learned the business and been promoted from within by working in several positions, including produce manager, corporate accounting, front end manager, and non-licensed pharmacy manager. Elliott moved to Massachusetts in 2014 to take on the service area manager role at Wegmans’ Burlington store. In Westwood, she’s leading all aspects of customer service, which is a point of distinction at Wegmans, as well as overseeing community partnerships and giving.
Lisa Landry, merchandising area manager
Landry began working for Wegmans in 1985 while in high school and since then has enjoyed a variety of positions, including cheese shop team leader, bakery team leader, night manager, and front end manager. Landry also has experience working as an operations coordinator in the corporate office. Now a Norwood resident and merchandising area manager in Westwood, Landry will oversee all non-perishable departments, including grocery, nature’s marketplace, and wine, and will work with the entire store to ensure products are well-merchandised and easily accessible for customers.
Cassie Lawatsch, pharmacy area manager
Cassie Lawatsch, PharmD, graduated from Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in 2013 and now lives in Boston. A Wegmans employee since 2006, she began as a pharmacy technician and advanced into management. As pharmacy manager in Westwood, Lawatsch will ensure customers are provided with the expertise and products they need to live a healthier, better life, including immunizations, prescription auto-refill, and competitively low prices on select generic prescriptions.
Wegmans Westwood is a 122,000 square-foot supermarket that includes a Market Café with indoor and outdoor seating for nearly 300, as well as a complete wine and beer shop. Today, the store launched www.wegmans.com/westwood, which offers store details, Wegmans Shoppers Club sign up, and it will include blog posts by the Westwood management team.
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Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. is an 86-store supermarket chain with stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, and Massachusetts. The family-owned company, founded in 1916, is recognized as an industry leader and innovator. Wegmans has been named one of the ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’ by FORTUNE magazine for 18 consecutive years, ranking #7 in 2015. The company also ranked #1 for Corporate Reputation, among the 100 ‘most-visible companies’ nationwide in the 2014 Harris Poll Reputation Quotient ® study.
Contact Information:
Jo Natale, Wegmans vice president of media relations, 585-429-3627
Sophie Hamersley, RF|Binder for Wegmans, 781-559-0441