CHICAGO, June 8, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Home Chef, the
fast-growing meal kit subscription and retail business, today
announced leadership promotions and new roles intended to
strengthen plans for growth and accelerate innovation. Erik Jensen, the company's Chief Product
Officer, will be promoted to President where he will be reporting
directly to Pat Vihtelic, the
company's Founder and Chief Executive Officer. Pat will continue as
CEO, supporting Erik in his new role while focusing on long-term
strategy to align with Kroger's ambitious e-commerce growth goals.
Latasha Kempadoo joins the
organization as Chief People Officer, and David McCoy will be elevated to the role of Vice
President of Finance.
Founded in 2013 by Pat Vihtelic,
Home Chef was acquired by Kroger, America's largest grocery
retailer in 2018. Since then, Home Chef has expanded its footprint
into more than 2,100 Kroger stores nationwide and has experienced
rapid growth with expansion into new categories over the past year.
Home Chef grew its brand sales by 118% in 2020 as its e-commerce
business surged as a result of customers shifting increasingly
toward online food orders.
"I have been extremely proud of our team's ability to not only
be there for our customers throughout the pandemic, but also
innovate throughout it," said Vihtelic. "These team changes
strengthen our leadership team and position us well for continued
innovation, ensuring we are able to continue scaling the Home Chef
brand across channels."
"Home Chef is a growing and thriving business for Kroger, and we
believe having strong talent at the helm will enable us to continue
that success and deliver even more value to our customers," said
Dan De La Rosa, Kroger's group Vice
President of Fresh Merchandising. "As customers look for food
inspiration, we are developing innovative products and experiences
to meet their needs, including fresh meal solutions like Home Chef,
which experienced record sales last year."
Jensen has been with Home Chef for nearly six years and
continually expanded his leadership responsibilities. He assumed
the role of Chief Product Officer in 2017 and has played a pivotal
role in the growth of the retail business in Kroger
stores.
Kempadoo recently joined Home Chef with over 20 years of HR
experience, most recently at XPO Logistics. She has worked at
leading consumer companies including Henkel Corporation (acquirer
of Sun Products Corporation), Colgate-Palmolive and Pepsico
throughout her career and has held leadership roles at high growth
and food manufacturing businesses.
McCoy joined Home Chef from Crate & Barrel in 2018 and was
promoted to Senior Director of Finance in 2020. Throughout his
tenure, he has helped support critical initiatives across the
organization.
"I look forward to partnering closely with Pat to ensure Home
Chef continues on its current high-growth trajectory," said Jensen.
"We have an unparalleled executive team and exceptional Home Chef
associates, and I'm thrilled to be able to lead the team over this
next phase."
About Home Chef:
Home Chef is one of the largest
meal kit delivery services in the U.S., with over 3.5 million meals
delivered each month. Founded in 2013, Home Chef offers fresh,
pre-portioned ingredients and easy to follow recipes delivered
weekly and is designed for anyone to be able to cook and everyone
to enjoy. The Chicago-based
company delivers nationwide. For two years running, Home Chef has
been rated #1 in customer satisfaction among leading meal kit
companies, according to Market Force Information U.S. Grocery
Benchmark Study. Home Chef is a subsidiary of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:
KR). Find out more and get cooking at www.homechef.com. Follow
us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for updates
and inspiration.
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SOURCE Home Chef