Dive Brief:
- GPM Investments, the c-store arm of Arko Corp., promoted Carlos Pinzon from senior director of food franchises and acquisitions to vice president of food service and branded QSR franchises, a company spokesperson told C-Store Dive.
- This move comes after Richard Guidry left his role as senior vice president of food and beverage at the company, according to a message he posted on LinkedIn last week.
- Guidry headed GPM’s food and beverage department during the retailer’s development of Fas Craves, its proprietary foodservice program.
Dive Insight:
Pinzon will be instrumental in the further development of Fas Craves, as Arko has only opened two of at least seven planned pilot stores incorporating the program so far. The food program, which Arko first talked about in August 2024, offers a menu that includes crispy chicken biscuits, potato wedges, mozzarella sticks, jumbo chicken wings, chicken sandwiches and burgers.
Pinzon has been with GPM for nearly 14 years in a variety of leadership and foodservice roles.
“Most recently, he managed the company's food franchise business, shaped GPM’s QSR strategy, and supported M&A activities,” the spokesperson said about Pinzon. “His deep understanding of store operations and food background positions him well to lead the company's foodservice initiatives as we expand its fas CRAVES concept across GPM’s network.”
Prior to joining GPM, Pinzon worked for over seven years with The Pantry, a major c-store chain that Alimentation Couche-Tard acquired in 2014.
Guidry joined GPM in October 2023 and left last month, according to his LinkedIn bio. Before joining GPM, he worked for close to four years with Casey’s General Stores, first as director of operations, then category director, before spending almost two years as the company’s brand director for food service. He also spent about 15 years in a variety of management and director positions with convenience retailer RaceTrac earlier in his career.
Guidry said in the LinkedIn post that he intends to take on some non-c-store consulting roles while looking for his next full-time role.
“I'm incredibly proud of the work my team and I accomplished, and I'm grateful for the experience,” Guidry wrote in the post.
