Day thirteen of twenty looking back at two decades of the Academy of Women Achievers! Today’s featured alumna is Laura Sen AWA ’11, President and CEO of BJ’s Wholesale Club.

Laura Sen leads 26,000 BJ’s Wholesale Club employees and has grown annual revenues to nearly $11 billion. Shortly after Laura was inducted into the Academy of Women Achievers in 2011, BJ’s announced a comprehensive partnership with Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger relief agency. The company reached a major milestone earlier in 2014, donating 15 million pounds of nutritious food to local food banks since the program’s inception.

In an era when an increasing number of major retailers are keeping doors open for Thanksgiving, Laura has been outspoken about reinventing Black Friday and giving employees time to celebrate. “It’s commercialism and consumerism to a point we’re not willing to endorse. Call me old-fashioned, but I think Thanksgiving is a lovely holiday and not the time to be shopping.”

Listen to an NPR interview with Laura on her Keys to Success.