New development platform brings together leadership training across entire enterprise, offering growth opportunities for associates

CINCINNATI, April 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Kroger Co. $(KR)$ today announced the launch of Pearl Street Academy, a comprehensive career development and training platform designed to provide high-quality learning opportunities to associates across the Kroger Family of Companies.

"Pearl Street Academy represents our commitment to investing in the growth and development of our people," said Tim Massa, Kroger's executive vice president and chief experience officer. "By creating a single, connected home for development opportunities, we're ensuring that associates across our stores, supply chain and more, have access to the tools and experiences they need to advance and thrive in their careers."

Pearl Street Academy centralizes leadership development, training courses and professional growth experiences, making it easier for associates to access consistent, intentional development aligned with the company's leadership goals. Pearl Street Academy will enable associates to:

   -- Enhance their skills and capabilities in their current role and prepare 
      to take their career to the next level 
 
   -- Explore new skills and opportunities for growth across the business 
 
   -- Drive impact and results to reach business and career goals 

The academy is named in honor of Barney Kroger, who opened his first store on Pearl Street in Cincinnati with a passion for fresh products, innovation and care for communities and customers. Pearl Street Academy embraces Kroger's legacy by inspiring the next generation of talent across the company to discover their potential, take steps toward growth and confidently lead with purpose.

Associates can also benefit from Kroger's tuition reimbursement program, offering up to $21,000 for both part-time and full-time associates, covers GED courses to Ph.D. programs. Since its inception, this program has contributed more than $64 million to empower associates at the Kroger Family of Companies further their education with 89% of the recipients being hourly associates.

Kroger is Hiring for Roles that Enhance the Customer Experience

Those seeking a fresh opportunity are invited to apply using the mobile-friendly candidate experience, which makes it easier than ever to find the perfect role, seamlessly apply using profile import capabilities from LinkedIn or Indeed and join our team -- quickly. Associates have immediate access to Pearl Street Academy's comprehensive development programs to support their success at Kroger.

Visit krogerfamilycareers.com to learn more about pursuing a career at Kroger.

The Kroger Co. has been honored by Handshake for excellence in early career hiring, earned recognition as One of America's Most Trustworthy Companies by Newsweek and ranked among Computerworld's Top 100 best places to work in IT for eight years.

About Kroger

At The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), we are dedicated to our Purpose: To Feed the Human Spirit$(TM)$. We are, across our family of companies more than 400,000 associates who serve over 11 million customers daily through an e-Commerce experience and retail food stores under a variety of banner names, serving America through food inspiration and uplift, and creating #ZeroHungerZeroWaste communities. To learn more about us, visit our newsroom and investor relations site.

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SOURCE The Kroger Co.

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April 16, 2026 14:45 ET (18:45 GMT)