MELROSE PARK, Ill. — Convenience Valet has announced that its board has appointed two new members. The two new directors are Van Tarver, former president of the Kroger Convenience Store Division and Michael Brown, founder and former CEO of Sunstone Inc.

“We are excited to announce that Van Tarver from the Van Tarver Group … has accepted a role on our board,” said Jim Blosser, executive vice president of sales at Convenience Valet. “Van’s vast experience and knowledge of the c-store industry is a great fit for our company and we look forward to utilizing his insights as we grow our business.”

Tarver, who joined Kroger as president of Fremont, Calif.-based Quik Stop Markets Inc. in 1997, has more than 36 years of experience managing convenience stores and fuel operations. Tarver served as president of the Kroger Convenience Store Divisions, the Supermarket Petroleum Group and its Turkey Hill Dairy. He previously served as senior vice president of Thrifty Oil Co.

“I am excited to join the board of directors of Convenience Valet, an industry leader in their space with huge opportunities to grow and support their retail partners. It is an excellent company, led by an experienced and talented management team,” Tarver said.

“We are equally excited to announce that Michael Brown has also agreed to become a director,” said Blosser. “He brings with him proven skills in strategic planning, entrepreneurship, management consulting, marketing strategy and business development from several industries.”

Brown is an investor, business consultant and franchise owner. He also sits on multiple boards. Sunstone designs, merchandises and manufactures sterling silver jewelry for department stores and mass merchandisers. He has several The Learning Experience Children’s Academy franchises.

“I was an investor in Convenience Valet before I was invited to join the board because I believe that this company has great opportunities to grow with new and existing customers. I have always enjoyed the challenge of building partnerships with multi-store retailers and finding creative ways for both businesses to be more profitable. Convenience Valet is the industry leader from both a strategic and operational perspective, and I am excited to be part of its future,” said. Brown.

“The composition of our board of directors is just another example of the combined strength of our new company’s commitment to better serve our customers and better position our company for growth. It is a strategic advantage to be able to seek advice from a board made up of such experienced business leaders,” said David Baum, president and CEO of Convenience Valet.

Melrose Park, Ill.-based Convenience Valet is an industry leader in trial-size and travel-size consumer products. It offers more than 500 product SKUs to serve the convenience store, grocery, drug, vending, hotel, travel and food industries. It distributes to more than 100,000 retail outlets.