Produce veteran Mike Krage is the newest retail superhero at the Idaho Potato Commission, bringing more than 30 years of retail and wholesale produce industry experience.

As the new retail promotion director-Northeast/Midwest, (Mighty) Mike Krage replaces (Dynamite) Dave Rhodes, who is returning to his retail roots as director of produce and floral for Fresh Encounter, a 59-store chain in Indiana and Ohio.

Krage, who is based in Champaign, IL, will be utilizing category management, promotions and other marketing support tools to assist category managers and buyers in the Northeast and Midwest in boosting category profitability.

“I‘ve worked closely with IPC as a retailer over the last 20 years, and I’ve always valued their insights about what’s going on within that category,” said Krage. “I’m a big fan of using data, and IPC has some outstanding category data available by retailer and by region. I’m looking forward to sharing how category data can really help drive good decisions for assortment, pricing, promotion and merchandising.”

Supervalu/UNFI, Winn-Dixie, and Albertsons are among the companies where Krage has honed his produce expertise over the years, handling everything from operations to sales and merchandising to category management. He also served as one of the first board members for the Southeast Produce Council, founded in 1999, and was on the retail board of directors for United Fresh.

“Mike knows the produce industry from grower to end user, so he is able to hit the ground running with all the outstanding resources of the Idaho Potato Commission,” said Seth Pemsler, vice president of retail/international. “I know our customers are going to enjoy working with him.”

Krage and his wife, Diedre, celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary last year by hiking and zip lining near Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. They have a 24-year-old daughter who works as a registered nurse at the University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital.