TWISB 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award Winner
Lauren Poisson, Senior Business Manager at Daymon
Imagine you’re a mom of four kids who has decided to come back to full-time work after a three and a half-year break. Imagine that you’ve also chosen to pivot your career to a completely new industry and position. And, just for fun, add to the equation that as you start this new full-time position, a director says to you, “You’ve got some big shoes to fill.” For many people, this situation may have made them re-think the career pivot. But, for Lauren Poisson, Senior Business Manager at Daymon and our 2025 Women in Storebrands Lifetime Achievement Award winner, it was a challenge. Lauren didn’t shy away from the challenge.
Years later, Lauren smiles as she talks about that comment. “I like that she challenged me. At the time, I thought to myself that I needed to prove to her that I could do the job. I needed to prove to myself that I could do the job.” Lauren had a degree in psychology and prior to joining Daymon had been working as a substance abuse counselor until her third child was born. As she shifted her life to raising her family, she also opened her home to daycare to earn money. Out of the blue, a friend from college presented the opportunity to join Daymon as a part-time administrative assistant at the Spartan Stores Account. “It really seemed to be the best of both worlds for me. I could carve out a career outside of the home, yet on a schedule that worked for me to still care for my family.” And, it was. She started at Daymon. After two years of part-time work and welcoming her fourth child, the opportunity came up to become a full-time associate business manager. “I went for it. It was an opportunity to manage the General Merchandise (GM) and Health and Beauty Care (HBC) desk that I didn’t want to pass up. Even with everything to balance at home, I put myself in the mind frame of ‘I can make this work.’ “
Thinking back to that time, the way Lauren was able to tackle a new career and be present for her family was managing her schedule one day at a time. “My family was my motivation. I wanted to support my family financially. I put business first at the office and put my family first at home.” Lauren credits her ability to balance both work and home to her husband and to her managers. “My husband was always super supportive. We had a tag team approach to parenting. We balanced our work schedules, so that at least one of us could be home with the kids as much as possible. I also had some very supportive managers along the way that allowed flexibility in my schedule. They allowed me to leave early or come in late if I needed to. They trusted that I was going to get the job done and it made a real difference for me.“
Lauren’s drive to perform at work combined with flexible and supportive management allowed her to thrive in her position. As her confidence in the category grew, so did her responsibilities. After two years in the associate position, she was promoted to the business manager of the GM/HBC desk. At this point, Lauren had hit her stride and really felt that she belonged managing her desk. She had even earned a congratulatory hug from the director who told her she had big shoes to fill! Her career trajectory at Daymon just kept climbing. Managing the Candy desk was added to her GM/HBC responsibilities. Then, in 2020, at the height of the pandemic, she inherited the paper desk, managing bath tissue at a time when supply became scarce. Lauren moved to the Topco Itasca team in 2022, and as a senior business manager she continues to manage all non-food categories. She credits her ability to succeed, in part, to having interactions with very strong women in leadership positions to model. “The director of GM/HBC when I started was a woman and she was a mentor for me. She was the only woman at the director level in the organization at the time, and she was managing a desk that was a lot smaller in terms of business impact. Because of that, I witnessed times where she was treated differently amongst her male peers. She was very passionate and very well respected amongst her peers in the HBC Industry, and eventually became the director of Center Store Grocery before retiring.” Lauren was also present for the formation of the Top Care Strategy Team in partnership with Topco. There were other female directors present in the quarterly strategy discussions that were leading and succeeding in impacting the business.
Now with 20 years in the industry and five grown children, Lauren has been recognized by her peers with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Talk about shoes to fill! She has seen the industry change through some severe economic shake-ups, especially in 2008 and then again during the pandemic. Those economic down turns allowed private label to gain market share over branded items with attractive pricing and high-quality product. “If you look at the evolution of private label products, we’ve evolved so far beyond the terms “generic” or “national brand knock off.” Today, there are a lot of customers who don’t even realize that they are choosing private label products because of the high quality and the innovation happening in our space.” That doesn’t mean however that the private label space has won the brand game she cautions. As the economy recovers from a recession, private label brands have to be thinking about how to keep their customers when competing against big brand marketing budgets. “It has become about so much more than price,” says Lauren. “It’s about being constantly thoughtful about how you can meet the ever-changing end customer need. And, it’s about meeting the needs of the retailer who has to continue to differentiate in the marketplace to remain relevant and entice customers to shop in their stores.”
As she reflects on her career and what she’d like to pass along to professionals coming into the industry, Lauren advises first and foremost that you keep yourself open to learning. “Keep your eyes and ears open. Every day there is something to learn. You might not even realize how much you are soaking in just listening to conversations.” She also emphasizes the importance of relationships and mentorship in the work place. “Relationships matter. Treat the people around you with respect. When I first started in the industry, a co-worker who had been in industry for 30 years took me under her wing. We sat by each other; we ate lunch together. She gave me all sorts of insights and advice on navigating different challenges. I respected her insight and she respected my desire to learn. It was incredibly valuable for my career development.” And finally, Lauren encourages everyone to bet on themselves. “Take a real interest in understanding your current position, but also think about where you want to go within your company and your career. I think there are a lot of people who don’t apply for positions because they doubt they can do something. If you’re willing to learn, you can do it. Take those chances. Take a chance on yourself.”