Kris Kowalski Christiansen Named Grocer of the Year

Kowalski's is proud to announce that Chief Executive Officer Kris Kowalski Christiansen has been named 2024 Grocer of the Year by the Minnesota Grocers Association! Her parents, Kowalski's founders, Mary Anne Kowalski and the late Jim Kowalski, were both prior recipients of this award.

Kris Kowalski Christiansen has been a key part of Kowalski's Markets since its 1983 inception. After more than two decades of training and education, she had earned the position of Chief Operating Officer and has since moved into the role of Chief Executive Officer. Kris always keeps one eye on daily operations and the other on future company goals and needs.

As CEO, Kris works daily with the COO and VP of Operations to ensure all aspects of the company run smoothly. Attending strategy meetings for all departments, she has a hand in all policy, equipment, union, labor, capital, financial, brand and product decisions made in every jurisdiction. She tastes nearly every exclusive recipe and product produced in the company's commissary facilities. She also participates directly in Kowalski's private label program, testing those products before approval. She reviews all external ads and has a heavy hand in the determination of their content. Kris devotes substantial resources toward training stakeholders to organize, educate and set policy in accordance with democratic principles and standards through the Midwest Active Citizenship Initiative. This proprietary program teaches our employees that they have the capacity to know what is good, the responsibility to grow in that knowledge and the obligation to act accordingly to create sustainable solutions that serve the common good among diverse self-interests.