THOMASVILLE, Ga., May 23, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Flowers Foods, Inc.
(NYSE: FLO), producer of Nature's Own, Wonder,
Tastykake, Dave's Killer Bread, and other bakery
foods, today announced several key appointments consistent with the
company's management succession plan.
Effective May 23, 2019,
Bradley K. Alexander, president of
Flowers' Fresh Packaged Bread Business Unit, has been named chief
operating officer of Flowers Foods. He now oversees the company's
Fresh Packaged Bread and Snacking/Specialty Business Units, Supply
Chain, and Sales, and is responsible for driving the execution of
Flowers' strategic initiatives.
Also effective May 23, 2019, H.
Mark Courtney, senior vice president
of retail accounts, has been named president of the Fresh Packaged
Bread Business Unit. He is now responsible for driving innovation,
growth, and profitability across the company's key core and growth
brands, which include Nature's Own, Wonder, Dave's Killer
Bread and Canyon Bakehouse.
The company also announced that Stephen
R. Avera, chief legal counsel, will retire at the end of the
year after 33 years of service. Stephanie
B. Tillman, the company's vice president, chief compliance
officer, and deputy general counsel, will succeed him on
January 1, 2020.
Ryals McMullian, Flowers Foods' president and chief executive
officer, said, "We are fortunate to have an executive of Brad's
experience, who has served as COO in the past, return to this
important position. When we put our new organizational structure in
place in 2017, we asked him to lead the formation and development
of our new Fresh Packaged Bread Business Unit as president. Brad
built a best-in-class team, integrated that team into our new
organizational structure, and developed an atmosphere of
creativity, accountability, and execution. With the new structure
firmly in place, I am delighted to have him back in this role as a
key strategic advisor. Brad will continue to build on the work
we've already done to make Flowers a more agile, efficient, and
profitable company.
"As leader of our Fresh Packaged Bread Business Unit, Mark's
understanding of marketplace dynamics and retail partners will
guide our key core and growth brands in today's rapidly changing
retail environment," McMullian continued. "He has more than 35
years' experience in retail sales, category management, and the
baking industry, and I expect Mark to continue to drive innovation
and profitable brand growth."
In commenting on Steve Avera's
upcoming retirement, McMullian said, "I want to express our deep
appreciation to Steve for his service to our company. Steve has
been an integral part of our legal team since joining the company
in 1986, and I consider it a privilege to have been able to work
with him as part of that team. His thoughtful counsel has helped
guide Flowers through many significant events and transactions. We
wish him the very best in his retirement."
McMullian continued, "It's a testament to Flowers' succession
planning that we have someone of such high caliber as Stephanie to
transition to the role of chief legal counsel. Since joining
Flowers' legal team in 1995, Stephanie has handled a broad range of
legal matters, modernized our compliance capabilities, and
consistently provided outstanding counsel and sound judgment to
senior leadership. We look forward to her future
contributions."
Alexander, 60, joined the company in 1981, and has held
positions in sales, operations, and marketing, including bakery
president, regional vice president, and president of Flowers
Bakeries. He was named executive vice president and chief operating
officer of Flowers Foods in 2014 and president of the company's
Fresh Packaged Bread Business Unit in 2017.
Courtney, 58, joined the company in 1983 and has held positions
in sales and marketing, including executive vice president of
Flowers' specialty snack business. He was named senior vice
president of sales in 2008 and senior vice president of retail
accounts in 2017.
Tillman, 48, joined the company as a corporate attorney in 1995
and was promoted to vice president and associate general counsel;
vice president of compliance and assistant general counsel; and
vice president, chief compliance officer and deputy general
counsel.
About Flowers Foods
Headquartered in Thomasville, Ga.,
Flowers Foods, Inc. (NYSE: FLO) is one of the largest producers of
fresh packaged bakery foods in the United
States with 2018 sales of $4
billion. Flowers operates bakeries across the country that
produce a wide range of bakery products. Among the company's top
brands are Nature's Own, Wonder, Dave's Killer
Bread, and Tastykake. Learn more at
www.flowersfoods.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this press release that are not historical
facts are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements
relate to current expectations regarding long-term strategic and
other objectives of management and the expected benefits of the
management transition and are often identified by the use of words
and phrases such as "anticipate," "believe," "continue," "could,"
"estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "plan," "predict,"
"project," "should," "will," "would," "is likely to," "is expected
to" or "will continue," or the negative of these terms or other
comparable terminology. All forward-looking statements are subject
to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ from those projected. Other factors that may cause actual
results to differ from the forward-looking statements contained in
this release and that may affect the company's prospects in general
include, but are not limited to, (a) general economic and business
conditions and the competitive conditions in the baked foods
industry, including promotional and price competition, (b) changes
in consumer demand for our products, including changes in consumer
behavior, trends and preferences, including health and whole grain
trends, and the movement toward more inexpensive store-branded
products, (c) the success of productivity improvements and new
product introductions, (d) a significant reduction in business with
any of our major customers including a reduction from adverse
developments in any of our customer's business, including as a
result of product recalls or safety concerns related to our
products, (e) fluctuations in commodity pricing, (f) energy and raw
material costs and availability and hedging and counterparty risk,
(g) our ability to fully integrate recent acquisitions into our
business, (h) our ability to achieve cash flow from capital
expenditures and acquisitions and the availability of new
acquisitions that build shareholder value, (i) our ability to
successfully implement our business strategies, including those
strategies the company has initiated under Project Centennial,
which may involve, among other things, the integration of recent
acquisitions or the acquisition or disposition of assets at
presently targeted values, the deployment of new systems and
technology and an enhanced organizational structure, (j)
consolidation within the baking industry and related industries,
(k) disruptions in our direct-store delivery system, including
litigation or an adverse ruling from a court or regulatory or
government body that could affect the independent contractor
classification of our independent distributors, (l) increasing
legal complexity and legal proceedings that we are or may become
subject to, (m) product recalls or safety concerns related to our
products, and (n) the failure of our information technology systems
to perform adequately, including any interruptions, intrusions or
security breaches of such systems. The foregoing list of important
factors does not include all such factors, nor necessarily present
them in order of importance. In addition, you should consult other
public disclosures made by the company, including the risk factors
included in our most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K and
Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission ("SEC") and disclosures made in other filings
with the SEC and company press releases, for other factors that may
cause actual results to differ materially from those projected by
the company. We caution you not to place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements, as they speak only as of the date made
and are inherently uncertain. The company undertakes no obligation
to publicly revise or update such statements, except as required by
law.
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SOURCE Flowers Foods, Inc.