Sobelton leads 2007-08
MRA Board of Directors

Peter Sobelton, of Sundries Plus in Troy, was re-elected chair of the MRA Board of Directors Executive Committee at the August 14 board meeting. It’s his second year as chair.

Joe Swanson, north metro Detroit district team leader for Target Corporation, was re-elected chair-elect of the Executive Committee.

D. Larry Sherman, retired owner of the former Sherman Shoes in Birmingham, was re-elected treasurer.

Larry Meyer remains as MRA chairman and CEO, and James P. Hallan continues as president and chief operating officer. On January 1, 2008, Hallan will become chief executive officer, replacing the retiring Meyer.

The board also appointed a new member, James Walsh, recently retired senior vice president and CFO of Meijer, Inc. He fills the seat vacated by Winfrey Smith, of Sears Roebuck and Company, who left the board last year when he was relocated to Hoffman Estates, Illinois.

Walsh joined the Grand Rapids-based retailer in 1992. He previously held executive positions with Warehouse Club, Inc., Household Merchandising, Inc. and Jewel Companies, Inc., all in Illinois.

Swanson was re-elected to a three-year term on the board at the annual meeting in June, along with three other directors:

• Barb Stein, owner/operator of Great Northern Trading Co., Rockford, a specialty gifts and home décor store she opened in 1977.

• Orin Mazzoni Jr., president of Orin Jewelers, Inc., a family-owned business with stores in Garden City and Northville. He previously served on the board of Michigan Retailer Services, Inc. and is a director and former president of Michigan Jewelers Association.

•  Thomas Ungrodt, president and CEO of Ideation, Inc., Ann Arbor, a leading producer of marketing solutions for independent gift retailers across the nation. He also serves on the board of Retailers Mutual and previously served on the Michigan Retailers Services, Inc. board.

Joe Kay, of Northland Tire and Service, Inc. in Southfield, was re-elected chair of the Retailers Mutual Board of Directors at the August 14 board meeting. It’s his second year as chair.

Other continuing Retailers Mutual officers are CEO Meyer, President and Chief Operating Officer Hallan and Jean Sarasin, secretary and treasurer.

Kay, Meyer and Dan Marshall—president of Lansing-based Marshall Music Company, with stores in Lansing, Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids, Detroit and Traverse City—were re-elected to three-year terms on the Retailers Mutual board at the Association’s Annual Meeting in June.

Marshall also was re-elected to a one-year term on the Board of Directors of Michigan Retailers Services, Inc., the wholly-owned subsidiary and service-delivery arm of MRA. Hallan also was named to the board.

Elected to the MRS, Inc. board for the first time was Becky Beauchine Kulka, owner of Becky Beauchine Kulka Diamonds & Fine Jewelry in Okemos. Her community-focused store was selected Michigan Retailer of the Year in 2006 and named one of the “coolest” jewelry stores in the nation by Instore magazine in 2005. Kulka also serves as president of the Michigan Jewelers Association.