Yesway has hired Chuck Sanders as vice president of merchandising, the convenience retailer announced on Tuesday. He’ll lead the merchandising organization and help develop long-term strategy for Yesway’s network of over 400 convenience stores across the South and Southwest.
Sanders is joining Yesway after spending the past year and a half as soft drinks category manager for 7-Eleven, according to his LinkedIn bio. As VP of merchandising, he’ll manage Yesway’s merchandising team and oversee the company’s category management, assortment optimization, vendor partnerships, pricing, planograms and more. He’ll also work with Yesway’s marketing, loyalty, operations, fuel, financial planning and supply chain teams.
Sanders will report to Ray Harrison, chief marketing and merchandising officer.
"His depth of experience, his results-driven mindset, and his ability to build strong partnerships will be invaluable as we elevate our merchandising capabilities and continue delivering outstanding value to our customers,” Harrison said of Sanders. “Chuck is a seasoned leader, and we are excited about the impact he will make across our organization."
Sanders joined 7-Eleven in 2024, according to his LinkedIn bio. He had spent the prior six years as category manager and then director of merchandising and packaged beverage with Cal’s Convenience, a commission agent for Stripes. Before that, he spent over 22 years as a space management analyst and category manager with Texas-based supermarket chain Brookshire Grocery Company.
“I look forward to partnering with Ray, the leadership team, and the talented merchandising organization to build on the company's momentum and help drive the next phase of growth,” Sanders said in Tuesday’s announcement.
Yesway continues to build out its executive team even as its store growth has stalled in recent years. Besides Sanders, the company hired Harrison as CMO in September, and tapped former Murphy USA veteran Robert Drake as VP of facilities in November.
