Greg Welling was recently named the vice president of retail operations for Associated Retail Operations (ARO). In his new role, Greg oversees dozens of retail functions working closely with Darin Peirce and other ARO leaders on continual improvement for the company’s corporate stores.
Greg got his start at Macey’s in Carillon Square in Orem as a 16-year-old bagger with an hourly wage of $4.15 per hour. Over the next 24 years, Greg worked as a checker, front-end manager, graveyard stocker, frozen foods manager, grocery manager, assistant store director, store director, pricing analyst and systems and integration director.
“I have always loved working in a grocery store,” said Greg. “In fact, for my high school senior picture my mom had me wear my Macey’s uniform. I still love the grocery business!”
While working at stores, Greg graduated from Utah Valley State University with a bachelor’s degree in business management. Greg also holds an MBA from Brigham Young University.
Greg and his wife Angie have been married for 20 years and have a 15-year-old daughter named Abbie. As a family, the Welling’s enjoy exploring national parks together. They have visited 17 national parks so far and aspire to visit more. If Greg had to name a favorite, he cites Glacier National Park in Montana as the top national park on his list. Greg also enjoys hiking, canyoneering, mountain biking and board games. His favorite food is hamburgers and French fries.
“I have always enjoyed working with the fun, talented and hardworking team members who are attracted to the grocery business,” said Greg. “I also like that every day is a new challenge and there is so much variety in the work we get to do. I love how we get to interact with guests and serve our communities. Being a local grocer allows us to be the hub of the communities we serve, which allows us to positively affect the lives of our guests in substantial ways.”