UTZ Brands Announces Promotions to Executive Management Team as Company Positions for Next Phase of Growth
July 26 2021 - 8:30AM
Business Wire
Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE: UTZ) (“Utz” or the Company”), a leading
U.S. manufacturer of branded salty snacks, today announced several
changes to its Executive Management Team. Today’s announcements
reflect the Company’s ongoing process of evaluating capabilities
needed in its management team to better position Utz for its next
phase of growth.
“As we evolve as a public company, we will continue to enhance
Utz’s leadership team to accelerate our ability to grow and
strengthen our organization,” said Dylan Lissette, Chief Executive
Officer of Utz. “Our collective goal is to create long-term value
for our stakeholders, and we are uniquely positioned to capitalize
on growth opportunities for our Power Brands while also enhancing
profitability through our value creation initiatives. We believe
today’s announcements provide the Company with the optimal
organizational structure to execute against our strategy, and will
best position Utz to deliver on its commitment to be the
fastest-growing, pure-play branded salty snack company of scale in
the U.S.”
Today the Company announced the following changes to its
Executive Management Team:
- Cary Devore has been appointed Executive Vice President and
Chief Operating Officer, a new position within Utz, effective
October 4, 2021. Mr. Devore is currently the Company’s Chief
Financial Officer and will continue to report to Dylan Lissette,
Chief Executive Officer of Utz. As Chief Operating Officer, Mr.
Devore will work across the organization to help drive revenue
growth, productivity, and operational excellence. In addition, he
will continue to drive the Company’s strategic corporate
initiatives including mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, as
well as continue to provide oversight for the Project Management
Office, which manages the implementation of value creation and
acquisition integration initiatives.
- Cary joined Utz in 2016 as a Board Member as part of a minority
equity investment into Utz and transitioned to a full-time
operational role in 2017. From 2016 to 2019, Cary worked closely
with Mr. Lissette on driving M&A (completing eight acquisitions
together), value creation and team development, as Utz continued
its national expansion and built out its capabilities. In 2019,
Cary became EVP and CFO, where he focused on leading the Company’s
merger with Collier Creek Holdings and its highly successful
transition to a public company.
Ajay Kataria has been appointed Executive
Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, effective October 4,
2021. Mr. Kataria is currently the Company’s Executive Vice
President of Finance and Accounting and will report to Mr.
Lissette. Mr. Kataria is a global consumer goods finance leader
with more than 20 years of experience. As CFO, he will assume
responsibility of Accounting, Tax and Investor Relations, in
addition to the business partner teams and Information Technology
function, that he oversees today.
- Ajay joined Utz in 2017 and has been instrumental in building
out the Company’s FP&A, Commercial Finance, and Supply Chain
Finance teams, as well as overseeing the IT function, and playing a
leadership role in migrating to a new fully integrated ERP
infrastructure. In addition, Ajay has been a key contributor to
Utz’s M&A integrations and helped lead the Accounting team
through the Company’s public listing process. Ajay joined Utz from
Armstrong Flooring, Inc. (NYSE: AFI), where he served as Vice
President, Global Finance and Strategy, and led all aspects of
business finance and strategy, including international finance
teams across Asia and Australia. Prior to Armstrong, Ajay was with
Chobani as Vice President, Finance, where he played a significant
role as part of the team brought in by a private equity investor.
Prior to that, Ajay spent a decade with PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:
PEP), where he held increasingly complex finance roles in large
regional and national Direct Store Delivery (“DSD”) operations
within the U.S. beverage business.
- Jim Sponaugle has been appointed Executive Vice President
and Chief People Officer, effective October 4, 2021. Mr.
Sponaugle is currently the Company’s Senior Vice President of Human
Resources and Personnel Development and will continue to report to
Mr. Lissette in his new role. Jim joined Utz in early 2020 and was
instrumental in guiding the Company through the COVID-19 pandemic,
while he also helped to build the Company’s corporate governance
and compliance framework as a newly public company. Jim is
passionate about positioning Utz for a stronger future focused on
talent development as the Company continues to grow.
- Todd Staub, Executive Vice President and Chief
Administrative Officer, has announced his intention to retire
effective January 3, 2022. Mr. Staub has a tremendous history
at Utz, helping to grow the Company over the past 25 years from
$100 million in sales to over $1 billion today. Todd’s
contributions include Controller, Chief Financial Officer, and
eventually the promotion to Executive Vice President & Chief
Administrative Officer in 2017. Todd has graciously given Utz
significant notice of his future retirement to ensure a smooth
transition, and the Company thanks Todd for his incredible
contributions during his successful tenure at Utz.
Utz Brands snack foods can be found in leading retailers across
the U.S. or available online at Utzsnacks.com. Join the
conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter using
@UtzSnacks.
About Utz Brands, Inc.
Utz Brands, Inc. (NYSE: UTZ) manufactures a diverse portfolio of
savory snacks through popular brands including Utz®, ON THE BORDER®
Chips & Dips, Golden Flake®, Zapp’s®, Good Health®, Boulder
Canyon®, Hawaiian® Brand, and TORTIYAHS!®, among others.
After a century with strong family heritage, Utz continues to
have a passion for exciting and delighting consumers with delicious
snack foods made from top-quality ingredients. Utz’s products are
distributed nationally through grocery, mass merchandisers, club,
convenience, drug and other channels. Based in Hanover,
Pennsylvania, Utz operates fifteen facilities located in
Pennsylvania, Alabama, Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana,
Massachusetts, Michigan and Washington. For more information,
please visit www.utzsnacks.com or call 1‐800‐FOR‐SNAX.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210726005187/en/
Utz Brands, Inc.
Contacts:
Media Kevin Brick kbrick@utzsnacks.com
Investors Kevin Powers kpowers@utzsnacks.com
Utz Brands (NYSE:UTZ)
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