Chief executives took the spotlight in October, with three major convenience retailers making a switch at the top of their respective companies. Other notable players appointed new leaders in foodservice, finance and operations. 

Below are the top c-store executive moves from October. And here’s our roundup from September in case you missed it.

Murphy USA announces CEO succession, interim CFO

Chief Operating Officer Mindy West will take over as CEO of Murphy USA on Jan. 1, 2026. She has already been promoted to president, the company said.

She succeeds Andrew Clyde, who has helmed the company since it was spun off from former parent Murphy Oil in 2013. Clyde will retire from leadership at the end of 2025 but will stay on as a non-executive advisor through February 2027 to help with the transition. 

West has also been with Murphy USA since the spinoff, becoming the company’s executive vice president, CFO and treasurer in 2017, and then its first-ever chief operating officer in 2024.  

She will also join the retailer’s board of directors after Clyde leaves at the end of the year. 

October also brought the departure of CFO Galagher Jeff, who spent about a year and a half in the top financial role. He joined Murphy from discount retailer Dollar Tree in early 2024, when West vacated the CFO role.

Murphy named Donald Smith Jr. interim CFO. He has served as the retailer’s VP and controller since the spin-off and became treasurer in 2024.

UDF looks outside for new chief executive

United Dairy Farmers has named Michael Ahmed as its new CEO. He replaced Brad Lindner, who is retiring after 47 years with UDF and nearly three decades as president and CEO.

Ahmed joined the convenience retailer from Gorilla Glue, where he was COO for the past five years. He also spent over a decade in VP-level roles with Tyson Foods and AdvancePierre Foods in a variety of planning and logistics, network strategy and business operations roles.

TravelCenters of America’s CEO departs

Debi Boffa resigned as CEO of TravelCenters of America after nearly three decades to return to her home country of New Zealand, parent company BP said. 

Before being named TA’s CEO in 2023, Boffa was president of BP’s retail operating organization in the United States. 

Greg Franks, BP’s senior vice president of mobility and convenience for the Americas, will replace Boffa in the interim while retaining his current position and responsibilities. Before joining BP, Franks spent more than a decade with 7-Eleven in a variety of roles, including SVP and chief franchise officer, SVP of U.S. operations and VP of acquisitions.

Arko names interim CFO

Arko Corp. has named Jordan Mann interim chief financial officer while it searches for a permanent replacement for Rob Giammatteo, who resigned in August. Mann has been senior vice president of corporate strategy, capital markets and investor relations for most of his two-plus years with Arko.

During his time with the company, Mann helped lead Arko’s strategic initiatives, strengthen investor engagement and support capital markets activities, according to the announcement.

Even if Mann is not chosen as the permanent replacement, he will keep all additional salary and benefits he was granted with the interim role.

Pilot adds new operations SVP

Pilot has named Jorge Valdes senior vice president of operations. Valdes, who initially joined Pilot in October 2023 as VP of operations excellence, came to the company from appliance and electronics manufacturer Regal Rexnord, where he served as VP and general manager of Americas motors. Prior to that, he spent more than 17 years across a number of roles with marine recreation and boating company Brunswick.

EG America nabs Dunkin’ exec for brand management role

EG America, the U.S. arm of EG Group, has hired Beth Turenne as vice president of brand management. In this role, Turenne will oversee EG America’s brand strategy, positioning and marketing execution.

Turenne joins EG America from coffee and doughnut giant Dunkin’, where she was most recently VP of brand marketing and category management. She also spent more than four years as the QSR’s director of food brands and integrated marketing. 

BrakeTime bolsters foodservice ambitions with new VP

BrakeTime Corner Market has named Rene Da Costa vice president of food, dispensed beverage and QSR. 

Da Costa came to BrakeTime from Shell USA, where he helped launch several food and beverage initiatives at the company’s roughly 200 Timewise c-stores. Prior to that, he spent about two decades in the restaurant, foodservice and hospitality industries

He joins BrakeTime as the retailer looks to expand its foodservice portfolio. CEO Usman Bashir told C-Store Dive earlier this year that in addition to growing its QSR partnerships, the company is building 35 new-to-industry sites with kitchens intended to support in-house food programs.