FMI - OMEGA - West Virginia Oil Marketers & Grocers Association

Michael Siakpere won’t let anything rain on his parade when it comes to serving shoppers. From an outdoor store event that he successfully brought indoors during a heavy downpour to emerging circumstances threatening to cut into profits, this store director at Skogen’s Festival Foods in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, continually strives to meet his goals and engenders a similarly driven mindset among employees.

As the saying goes, Kaitlyn Lester wears many hats. The general manager of a Lunds & Bylerlys store in Eagan, Minn., is a strong leader, fierce competitor, thoughtful mentor and compassionate community advocate.

There is an old adage, “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.” In order to prevent these outbreaks from reoccurring, something must change, and the change has to occur industry-wide.

The entrepreneurial mindset is flexible, adaptable, sees change before it happens, and seizes new opportunities. In my opinion, what really makes an entrepreneurial spirit shine is the ability to remain focused on growing, developing and improving. You better believe an entrepreneurial spirit flows through the DNA of a store manager.

This pass month turned out to be one of the busiest election months — a record 19 states held their congressional primaries in June. Between shifting voting requirements and altering deadlines, the results of June elections will have an impact on the food industry.