STEVE GOESSLING NAMED IGA 2002 INTERNATIONAL RETAILER OF THE YEAR

CHICAGO, IL – Steve Goessling, owner of Reading IGA in Reading, Ohio, has been named one of seven IGA 2002 International Retailers of the Year.

Goessling was chosen for the annual award from the 4,400 IGA Retailers worldwide. A committee of Food Industry experts selected Goessling based on his exceptional performance in areas ranging from leadership and innovation to hometown involvement and employee development. He will honored at IGAÕs 2002 International Retailers of the Year Awards Dinner Ceremony, to be held on Saturday, May 4, during the Food Marketing Institute's Supermarket Industry Exposition in Chicago.

"Goessling's performance within the past year exemplifies IGA's entrepreneurial spirit and innovative marketing," said Dr. Thomas Haggai, chairman and CEO of IGA. "By demonstrating a true commitment to the community with Hometown Proud values, as well as operational excellence, his performance parallels, if not surpasses, the best of the retail worldÕs standards."

During his four years as owner of Reading IGA, Goessling has significantly increased store sales despite the area's reputation for heavy supermarket competition. Under his direction, Reading IGA has been awarded Five-Star ratings on IGA performance assessments for the past two years.

Goessling has received several other awards for his efforts, including Progressive Grocer's Outstanding Independent Retailer Award and Reading Chamber of Commerce's Entrepreneur of the Year Award, both of which were presented to him in 1999.

IGA, the only global supermarketer based in the United States, is the world's largest voluntary supermarket network with aggregate worldwide retail sales of more than $21 billion per year. The Alliance includes more than 4,400 Hometown Proud Supermarkets worldwide, supported by 37 distribution companies and more than 55 major manufacturers, vendors and suppliers encompassing everything from grocery to equipment items. IGA ranks in the top 10 in world food supermarketing. IGA has operations in 48 states and 41 countries, commonwealths and territories on all six inhabited continents.