Robert F. McCarthy. Mr. McCarthy was, until early 2004, President of Acosta Grocery Channel, the grocery arm of Acosta Sales and Marketing Company, a leading full-service sales and marketing agency in North America providing outsourced sales, merchandising, marketing and promotional services to manufacturers in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry. Responsible for over 80 percent of the company’s $630 million in operations and 10,000 associates, Mr. McCarthy played an instrumental role in the company’s growth since 1998.

Mr. McCarthy joined Acosta in 1998 when he led PMI-Eisenhart, as President and COO, in its merger with the company. Acosta then entered into a marketing agreement with Luke Soules in 1999 and ultimately created a powerful new sales and marketing company that spanned the nation. The company’s range of services was further expanded in 1999 through the acquisitions of Kelley-Clarke and the MAI Companies.

Prior to Acosta, Mr. McCarthy assumed increasingly senior positions at PMI over the course of 25 years, being promoted from a Marketing Manager to Account Executive, President and COO, and finally President and CEO. Under his leadership, the company successfully merged with Eisenhart & Associates in 1995, and he grew the combined entity’s revenues from $36 million to $104 million over three years. During his tenure as President and COO of PMI-E, Mr. McCarthy oversaw several strategic acquisitions and the company held a strong market leader position in the Central U.S. prior to its merger with Acosta.

Between 1980 and 1995, Mr. McCarthy was a member of numerous Client/Sales Agency Advisory Boards including Clorox, Minute Maid, Mars, Domino Sugar, Nabisco, IRI, Quaker, Brach, and Pillsbury. He is also the past President of the Chicago Food Brokers Association, and present board member of Boulder Specialty Brands.