Dimmitt named Ridley’s Store Director of the Year

by Philip A. Janquart

 Annex resident Mary Dimmitt was named Store Director of the Year at the annual Ridley’s Family Market’s Christmas awards event held Dec. 8 in Jackpot, Nev.

 Dimmitt took over the Weiser store’s top spot about a year ago when then director Shane McInroy was promoted to district manager of Ridley’s east division headquartered in Wyoming in January 2021.

 McInroy, who now oversees stores in Wyoming and Colorado, worked as the director at the Weiser location for five years before being promoted.

 Dimmitt was chosen among store directors at 31 other locations spread across Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Wyoming, and Idaho.

 “I’ve been with Ridley’s for 11 years and was an assistant for a long time,” Dimmitt explained. “I’ve only been store director for one year. He (McInroy) set me up really good; he had things going really smoothly and I just had to run it after that. First year out, being a store director, it feels like quite an accomplishment, especially when you are going up against so many other stores.”

 Dimmitt said she had no idea she would be honored at the Dec. 8 event.

 “I was on stage receiving other awards for the store and they told me that I might as well stay up there a minute,” she said. “I had already been clued in that we had won several of them. The last award was Director of the Year. Nobody said anything to me, so I was surprised. I was happy; it was a good day.”

 Some factors Ridley’s considers when choosing a Director of the Year include successful completion of daily and monthly tasks and assignments, as well as store “numbers.”

 “Throughout the year, we have assignments, things they send on your electronic device,” Dimmitt explained. “We take pictures and show how we are doing things. That’s part of it; the other part is your numbers. Every year the district managers and Mark (Ridley) come together, and they throw some names in the hat and they vote to see who won.”

 Dimmitt attended Annex School before graduating from Weiser High School in 1991. She then studied accounting at ITT Technical Institute in Boise. 

 She previously worked for Ridley’s as a closing manager before moving to Bend, Ore. with her family.

 “It was too big,” Dimmitt said of life in Bend, which has become a resort town over the last decade or two. “My husband’s dad and brother lived there, so we moved and stayed there for about two years. We came back and I worked at Champion (Homes) until I was laid off. That’s when I came back to Ridley’s. I just worked my way back up the ladder again.”

 She is married to Brent and has two daughters: Trinity, 21, and Annamarie, 15.

 Ridley’s Christmas event is held every year in Jackpot, the company providing dinner, live entertainment, and overnight lodging. Attendees must be employed with Ridley’s for an unspecified length of time to be invited.

 The family-owned retail grocery chain was founded in 1984 in Payson, Utah, subsequently moving its headquarters to Boise and then to Jerome.

 In 2015, Ridley’s was ranked as the 21st largest private company in Idaho. As of August 2017, President Mark Ridley, Director Jerry Ridley, and Secretary Constance Ridley run the company.

 Dimmitt said Ridley’s is a good company to work for and that Mark Ridley likes to show his employees that he is willing to work alongside them.

 “He’s very hands-on,” she said. “He was here on Thanksgiving Day, and he was here on Christmas Eve. He is here in the store on major holidays; if he is asking you to be there, he’ll be there as well.”

 She added that the job allows her not only to pay her bills, but to live in the area.

 “I’ve lived in Weiser and had to work in Nampa, and that’s not where I want to be in my life.”

 Dimmitt said she looks forward to keeping the Weiser Ridley’s running smooth.

 “I’m sure I’ll be scrutinized a little harder now because the bar is set a little higher, but that’s Ok,” she said. “I told Mark (Ridley) that I accept the challenge and it will give me something to shoot for.”