Food City names three new vice presidents | News

ABINGDON, Va. — Food City recently promoted three of its longtime associates to the position of vice president.

Steve Holloway, vice president of meat and seafood operations, Bucky Slagle, vice president of produce and floral operations, and David Haaf, vice president of food service and Starbucks operations, have been elevated.

“I have had the extreme pleasure of watching these guys grow both personally and professionally as they came up through the company ranks. They’re dedicated to our customers, our associates, and the communities we serve. We’re fortunate to have them serve as a part of our executive leadership team, and I would like to personally thank them for their outstanding service and congratulate them on these well-deserved promotions,” said Steven C. Smith, Food City president and chief executive officer.

• Holloway began his grocery career at 16, working part-time for a Knoxville-based retail group.

He later relocated to Murfreesboro to attend Middle Tennessee State University and accepted a position in the meat department of a local supermarket. After completing his college education, Holloway returned to Knoxville and accepted a position as meat manager for White Stores. In 1990, Food City acquired the White Store chain.

Holloway was later promoted to district meat trainer/supervisor. He served in that capacity for 10 years before being promoted to his most recent position of director of meat and seafood operations. Holloway and his wife, Melissa live in Kingsport and are the parents of Courtney and Jarrod.

• Slagle joined the Food City team in 1988, enrolling in the company’s assistant store manager training program.

He served as an assistant store manager for two years before being promoted to store manager, where he served for six years. Slagle was promoted to district manager for Food City’s Knoxville division in 1998, responsible for the oversight of 13 supermarkets. In 2016, he was promoted to director of produce and floral operations, responsible for oversight of the operation of both departments company wide.

Slagle received a bachelor of arts degree from Emory & Henry College. He lives in Gray with his wife, Amiee, and two daughters, Aliee and Emilee.

• Haaf joined the Food City team in 2005, serving as corporate executive chef, responsible for a team of eight culinary trainers.

In 2008, he was promoted to director of food service, responsible for the oversight of food service operations, merchandising, and training, as well as the “full-service” catering company. In 2017, Haaf helped open the company’s first in-store Starbucks café, which has now grown to 32 locations. He is a Certified Chef de’ Cuisine of the American Culinary Federation and a graduate of the ACF accredited Culinary Arts Program at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He has AAS degrees with majors in culinary arts and hospitality/tourism management from Kirkwood Community College and Trident Technical College in Charleston, S.C.

He took a four-year break from the hospitality industry to serve in the Marine Corps from 1992 to 1996. Haaf currently lives in Gray with his wife, Mellaine, and daughter, Asiana.