Bunch selected executive director of Store Ops
FORT LEE, Va. – Robert J. Bunch, former director of the Defense Commissary Agency’s (DeCA) Central Area, was named executive director of the Store Operations Group effective Nov. 6.
Bunch fills a position held by Rogers Campbell, who retired from government service Jan. 31. Ronald K. Hurt had served as acting executive director of Store Operations director upon Campbell’s retirement. Hurt returns to his full-time duties as director of store support and deputy to the Store Operations Group executive director.
In making the announcement, Bill Moore, DeCA director and CEO, welcomed Bunch to the Senior Executive Service and his new position leading the Store Operations Group. Moore also thanked Hurt for his service as acting director.
“Please join me in congratulating Mr. Bunch on his new position,” Moore said. “Our stores are the agency’s heartbeat when it comes to delivering this vital commissary benefit to our customers. We all look forward to the leadership and experience he will bring to the Store Ops Group as we serve our military communities.
“The agency also appreciates Ron Hurt’s exceptional leadership during his acting tenure as the Store Ops executive director,” he added. “He stepped in and kept the ship afloat after Rogers Campbell retired.
As Store Operations executive director, Bunch directs more than 11,000 employees, and manages and directs tactical store support for DeCA’s nearly 240 commissaries. These stores are configured under five areas divided into 25 field zones in 46 states, 13 countries and two U.S. territories. He is also responsible for ensuring that continual quality of service is provided to commissary patrons while maintaining the agency’s mission integrity.
Bunch’s previous role as director of Central Area, involved oversight of 46 commissaries located in 14 states spanning from Wisconsin and Michigan in the north to Florida and Louisiana in the south. The area’s annual sales exceed $1 billion.
Prior to being director of Central Area, Bunch had served since 2011 as chief of the Operations Guidance & Program Standardization Division in the Store Operations Directorate at DeCA Headquarters.
He began his commissary career in 1996 as a grocery manager at the Key West Naval Air Station Commissary in Florida. During his commissary career Bunch has subsequently held every leadership role in the field including store administrator, store director and zone manager.
Prior to DeCA, he served in uniform, retiring from the U.S. Army in 1995 after having served honorably in a myriad of assignments throughout the world to include serving in the Gulf War for which he was awarded a Bronze Star and a Meritorious Service Medal.
Upon his retirement Bunch went to work as a store manager for Delhaise America’s Food Lion Division, Salisbury, North Carolina. He was store director for the Brevard, North Carolina, Food Lion when he changed his career path to join DeCA with an assignment to the Key West Florida Commissary.
-DeCA-
About DeCA: The Defense Commissary Agency operates a worldwide chain of commissaries providing groceries to military personnel, retirees and their families in a safe and secure shopping environment. Commissaries provide a military benefit, saving authorized patrons thousands of dollars annually on their purchases compared to similar products at commercial retailers. The discounted prices include a 5-percent surcharge, which covers the costs of building new commissaries and modernizing existing ones. A core military family support element, and a valued part of military pay and benefits, commissaries contribute to family readiness, enhance the quality of life for America’s military and their families, and help recruit and retain the best and brightest men and women to serve their country.