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Eric Sidman Chief Merchandising Officer, Army & Air Force Exchange Service
Eric Sidman is an Executive Vice President and the Chief Merchandising Officer for the Army & Air Force Exchange Service (Exchange), at its headquarters in Dallas.
The Exchange is a non-appropriated fund instrumentality of the Department of Defense. Established in 1895, the Exchange is the 51st-largest retail organization in the U.S. With annual revenues of $8.5 billion, the Exchange employs approximately 25,000 associates, including military personnel. In the last 10 years, the Exchange benefit has provided $15 billion in value to the military community.
The Exchange operates more than 5,000 facilities, including department, convenience and military clothing stores, restaurants, malls, movie theaters, gas stations and other specialty retail services on military installations. The Exchange’s operations span the Nation, four U.S. territories and more than 30 countries. Additionally, the Exchange Credit Program manages a $2.2 billion credit card receivables portfolio.
A major employer of Veterans and military spouses, the Exchange has hired more than 2,100 Wounded Warriors since 2010 and 65,000 Veterans and military spouses since 2013.
Sidman’s position is commensurate in rank to a member of the Senior Executive Service. Sidman provides vision and leadership in the planning and development of purchasing, pricing and merchandising strategies to support overall growth while maintaining focus on customers’ wants, needs and tastes.
A Florida native, Sidman earned a Master of Business Administration from Western Governors University and a Bachelor of Science in management information systems from the University of Central Florida.
He began his Exchange career in May 2007 as Planning, Allocation and Replenishment director at Exchange headquarters. In 2016, he was promoted to vice president of Store Experience and Design in the Customer Experience Directorate. He assumed the role of vice president of Consumables Convenience Channel Division the following year before being named senior vice president of Merchandising in October 2020. Sidman was named to his current position in June 2024.