Jason Cook and Alea Ausmer

By Chance Markets

Jason Cook and Alea Ausmer are partners in both life and business, bringing complementary strengths to their family enterprise. Jason began his grocery career at 16 and, after years of experience in independent retail and earning his degree from the University of Southern Mississippi, purchased his first store at just 28. Today, he leads a growing company with 10 grocery stores and 3 Ace Hardware locations.

Alea earned a Bachelor’s in Forensic Science from the University of Southern Mississippi and a Master’s in Forensic Genetics from the University of North Texas Biomedical School. After building a career in science, she chose to focus on raising their family and has remained deeply engaged in community service, volunteering with the Junior Auxiliary in Hattiesburg, MS.


Together, Jason and Alea credit their partnership as the foundation of their success. Their shared journey spans nearly two decades, and alongside growing their business, they are raising three daughters—Abigail, Addison, and Aliza. With Jason’s drive for growth and Alea’s unwavering support and perspective, they’ve built a thriving business while staying grounded in family and community.

Dale Normal Reeves

Leadership & Communication Expert
Author of Inspire People to Greatness
Creator of The Reeves Connection Method

Dale Reeves is an author and a nationally recognized leadership and communication expert who teaches leaders how to connect deeply, communicate authentically, and inspire greatness in the people around them. With more than 30 years of experience in corporate management, Dale equips leaders with the one skill AI can never replace—real human connection through one-on-one conversation that influences behavior and inspires action. He is also a Certified Forensic Interviewer (CFI), interrogator.

Steve Morrow

Allen’s Food Market

A 50+ year grocery veteran, Morrow has managed Allen’s Food Market in Bella Vista, Arkansas, just seven miles from Wal-Mart’s corporate offices in neighboring Bentonville, since 1999. He was named Associated Wholesale Grocer’s National Store Manager of the Year in 2015, chosen from over 3,400 stores. A master of social media, community connection, and shopping experience, he’s shared his unique passion and enthusiasm with grocers all over North America. His creative “no holds barred, 100 miles per hour” style will surely inspire you to look at your store, staff, and shoppers in a whole new and exciting way.

Richard Wardwell

President & CEO, Superior Grocers

Richard Wardwell is the President & CEO of Superior Grocers, one of Southern California’s largest independent supermarket chains operating 74 locations. In this role, he directs daily operations and strategic initiatives driving growth and innovation.

Richard’s 44-year grocery career began in 1982 as a courtesy clerk at Raley’s Supermarket in Reno, Nevada. Over nearly three decades, he worked his way up to General Manager, overseeing store operations across Nevada, California, and New Mexico. He later held leadership roles at Save Mart Supermarkets and Walmart before returning to Raley’s in 2011 as Vice President of Operations for their Food Source Division.

In 2014, Richard joined Superior Grocers as Vice President of Operations. Over the 12 years, he has played a key role in the company’s success, ultimately becoming President & CEO.

Richard serves as Chairman of the board for the California Grocers Association and is a member of the C-Level Roundtable Sharegroup. He has also served on the boards of the Western Association of Food Chains (WAFC), Olive Crest, New Mexico Grocers Association, and the Northern Nevada Food Bank.

Bhavdeep Singh

President & CEO, National Grocers Association

Bhavdeep Singh is an accomplished international executive with a very strong background in Healthcare, Retail Logistics, and Leadership Development. He has led private and public companies on three continents and has a very strong track record of building teams and delivering results.

Founder of WHA Partners and Whitehawk Associates (wha-partners.com) an advisory platform launched in 2020 with a focus on Healthcare, Retail, Logistics, and Leadership Development. His client list includes several multi-billion-dollar companies with brand presence all over the world. With offices in USA, India and Thailand, WHA/Whitehawk is quickly building a brand as a leading advisory platform.

Bhavdeep is also the Founder of Global MedTeam (globalmedteam.com) an exciting new platform that is focused on healthcare staffing and has offices in USA and the Philippines.

Founder and Chairman of Redesign backed HealthQuarters, a fast-paced healthcare start-up in NY, where Bhavdeep launched a visionary healthcare concept - healthquarters.com, an exciting new healthcare platform that brought together clinical and wellness under one roof.

CEO of Fortis Healthcare (Asia-based), one of the largest private hospital chains and healthcare platforms in the world, with over 30 hospitals. This is a highly specialized tertiary care hospital and diagnostics system with almost 4000 beds, 400 plus diagnostic lab centers, and one of the largest organ transplant programs in the world. Over two stints, Bhavdeep ran Fortis for six plus years.

Former Head of USA Operations at Ahold for 5 years where he had oversight for a $26 billion business with almost 800 stores, 30 warehouses, and was on the Executive Board of Ahold USA. He oversaw the entire US operation and had four Division Presidents reporting to him. He had a dual role where he was also the CEO of bfresh, an Ahold-backed venture that featured a small store concept, focusing on fresh foods.

Greg Fararra

President & CEO, National Grocers Association

Greg Ferrara is the President and CEO of the Washington, DC based National Grocers Association (NGA). NGA is the national trade association that is the voice of the retail and wholesale companies which comprise the independent sector of the supermarket industry, as well as those companies that provide products and services to the industry. In his role as President and CEO, Mr. Ferrara is responsible for working with NGA’s Board of Directors to develop and implement a strategic vision which advances the Association’s efforts and public policy positions. Prior to being appointed President and CEO in September 2019, Mr. Ferrara served for many years in various leadership roles at NGA, including as the organization’s chief lobbyist.


Mr. Ferrara brings a wealth of experience in the grocery industry, having managed his family’s century-old supermarket in New Orleans before the store was ultimately destroyed in 2005 in Hurricane Katrina. Greg holds a BA in Political Science from Loyola University New Orleans and is a fellow of the prestigious Institute of Politics at Loyola University. He is a graduate of the US Chamber of Commerce Institute for Organization Management (IOM), is a graduate of the NGA Executive Leadership Program at Cornell University and is an Eagle Scout. Greg and his wife Nicole are the proud parents of two children, Matthew and Katelyn.