TAMPA,
Fla., Nov. 15, 2023 /CNW/ - Primo Water
Corporation (NYSE: PRMW) (TSX: PRMW) (the "Company" or "Primo
Water"), a leading provider of sustainable drinking water solutions
direct to consumers in North
America and Europe, today announced that Primo Water's Board of Directors has appointed
Robbert Rietbroek as Chief Executive Officer and to the Board of
Directors, effective January 1,
2024. The appointment concludes a comprehensive CEO search
process, launched by the Board following Tom Harrington's decision to retire, with the
mandate to appoint a highly capable leader with extensive product
innovation, operational and transformational experience, capable of
further driving growth across Primo
Water's businesses for years to come.
Mr. Rietbroek is a seasoned executive bringing more than 25
years of experience at Fortune 500 companies to Primo Water, including five years as Senior Vice
President and General Manager responsible for Quaker Foods North
America (QFNA), a reported sector of PepsiCo. Prior to his role at
Quaker, Mr. Rietbroek was a Senior Vice President and General
Manager PepsiCo Australia and New
Zealand. Before his tenure at PepsiCo, Mr. Rietbroek served
as Vice President and General Manager Australia, New
Zealand, Pacific Islands and Vice President and Global
Sector Leader Baby and Child Care at Kimberly-Clark. Mr. Rietbroek
also spent nearly 16 years at Procter & Gamble in
a variety of management and marketing roles in North America, Latin
America, Europe,
Middle East, and Africa. Mr. Rietbroek has worked across
multiple consumer goods categories and has been recognized for
exceptional brand building and innovation, achieving several awards
and recognitions.
"On behalf of the Board, I want to thank Tom for his significant
contributions and dedicated years of service to Primo Water which helped establish the strong
foundation for the future," said Jerry
Fowden, Chairman of the Board. "The Board's search committee
worked diligently and thoroughly throughout the CEO search process,
and we are confident that Robbert is the right person to take
Primo Water into its next stage of
growth. Robbert has spent the last two decades developing a unique
skillset that will enable him to excel in his new role as CEO of
Primo Water. He is an outstanding
leader with a commitment to excellence and a proven builder and
leader of high-performance teams, and I look forward to watching
Robbert lead the Company in the years ahead." Mr. Fowden continued,
"Robbert has a strong track record of execution, and the Board
looks forward to working with him to build on our momentum as well
as to help guide Primo Water's
ongoing transformation into a leading pure-play water company in
North America."
"I am grateful for the opportunity to lead Primo Water and its talented team of associates
into the future," said Mr. Rietbroek. "As CEO, I look forward to
meeting the needs of our customers and supporting our dedicated
associates as we deliver on our strategic priorities, and drive
both long-term growth and value creation for our shareowners." Mr.
Rietbroek continued, "Water is the source of life, and I am eager
to provide hydration solutions that help inspire healthier lives,
healthier communities, and a healthier planet."
In connection with his appointment, Mr. Rietbroek will receive a
grant of an inducement equity award on the commencement of his
employment. Primo Water's Board of
Directors approved a $3.5 million
grant of restricted share units ("RSUs") to Mr. Rietbroek as a
material inducement to his hiring as Primo
Water's next CEO. The award will be made outside
Primo Water's existing equity
incentive plans, but subject to the same terms and conditions as if
granted under the Primo Water Corporation 2018 Equity Incentive
Plan, as amended. Each RSU will entitle Mr. Rietbroek to receive
one Primo Water common share for
each RSU that vests. The RSUs will vest in equal installments on
each of the first two anniversaries of the grant date, subject to
Mr. Rietbroek's continuous service through the applicable vesting
dates. The precise number of RSUs granted will be calculated based
on the prevailing market price on the first day of his
employment.
ABOUT PRIMO WATER
CORPORATION
Primo Water is a leading
pure-play water solutions provider in North America and Europe and generated approximately
$2.2 billion in annual revenue in
2022. Primo Water operates largely
under a recurring revenue model in the large format water category
(defined as 3 gallons or greater). This business strategy is
commonly referred to as "razor-razorblade" because the initial sale
of a product creates a base of users who frequently purchase
complementary consumable products. The razor in Primo Water's revenue model is its industry
leading line-up of innovative water dispensers, which are sold
through approximately 10,800 retail locations and online at various
price points. The dispensers help increase household and business
penetration which drives recurring purchases of Primo Water's razorblade offering or water
solutions. Primo Water's razorblade
offering is comprised of Water Direct, Water Exchange, and Water
Refill. Through its Water Direct business, Primo Water delivers sustainable hydration
solutions across its 21-country footprint direct to customers,
whether at home or to businesses. Through its Water Exchange
business, customers visit retail locations and purchase a
pre-filled bottle of water. Once consumed, empty bottles are
exchanged at our recycling center displays, which provide a ticket
that offers a discount toward the purchase of a new bottle. Water
Exchange is available in approximately 17,500 retail locations.
Through its Water Refill business, customers refill empty bottles
at approximately 23,500 self-service refill drinking water
stations. Primo Water also offers
water filtration units across its 21-country footprint.
Primo Water's water solutions
expand consumer access to purified, spring, and mineral water to
promote a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle while
simultaneously reducing plastic waste and pollution. Primo Water is committed to its water
stewardship standards and is proud to partner with the
International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) in North America as well as with Watercoolers
Europe (WE), which ensure strict adherence to safety, quality,
sanitation and regulatory standards for the benefit of consumer
protection.
Primo Water is headquartered in
Tampa, Florida (USA). For more
information, visit www.primowatercorp.com.
Safe Harbor Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and
Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 conveying
management's expectations as to the future based on plans,
estimates and projections at the time Primo
Water makes the statements. Forward-looking statements
involve inherent risks and uncertainties and Primo Water cautions you that several important
factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those
contained in any such forward-looking statement. The
forward-looking statements contained in this press release include,
but are not limited to, statements regarding the execution of the
Company's strategic priorities and related matters. The
forward-looking statements are based on assumptions regarding
management's current plans and estimates. Management believes these
assumptions to be reasonable, but there is no assurance that they
will prove to be accurate.
Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those described in this press release include, among others:
financial condition and results of operations; Primo Water's ability to compete successfully in
the markets in which it operates; fluctuations in commodity prices
and Primo Water's ability to pass on
increased costs to its customers or hedge against such rising
costs, and the impact of those increased prices on its volumes;
Primo Water's ability to maintain
favorable arrangements and relationships with its suppliers;
Primo Water's ability to manage
supply chain disruptions and cost increases related to inflation;
Primo Water's ability to manage its
operations successfully; currency fluctuations that adversely
affect the exchange between currencies including the U.S. dollar,
the British pound sterling, the Euro and the Canadian dollar; the
impact on Primo Water's financial
results from uncertainty in the financial markets and other adverse
changes in general economic conditions, including inflation and
interest rates; any disruption to production at Primo Water's
manufacturing facilities; Primo
Water's ability to maintain access to its water sources; the
impact of climate change on Primo
Water's business; Primo
Water's ability to protect its intellectual property; the
seasonal nature of Primo Water's
business and the effect of adverse weather conditions; the impact
of national, regional and global events, including those of a
political, economic, business and competitive nature, such as the
Russia/Ukraine war or the Israel/Hamas war; the impact of a pandemic,
such as COVID-19, related government actions and Primo Water's strategy in response thereto on
our business; Primo Water's ability
to consummate the proposed disposition of our international
businesses and its ability to achieve the expected benefits
thereof, including the risk that the parties fail to obtain the
required regulatory approvals or to fulfill the other conditions to
closing on the expected timeframe or at all; Primo Water's ability to fully realize the
potential benefit of transactions or other strategic opportunities
that it pursues; Primo Water's
ability to realize cost synergies of its acquisitions due to
integration difficulties and other challenges; Primo Water's exposure to intangible asset risk;
Primo Water's ability to meet its
obligations under its debt agreements, and risks of further
increases to its indebtedness; Primo
Water's ability to maintain compliance with the covenants
and conditions under its debt agreements; fluctuations in interest
rates, which could increase Primo
Water's borrowing costs; Primo
Water's ability to recruit, retain and integrate new
management; Primo Water's ability to
renew its collective bargaining agreements from time to time on
satisfactory terms; compliance with product health and safety
standards; liability for injury or illness caused by the
consumption of contaminated products; liability and damage to
Primo Water's reputation as a result
of litigation or legal proceedings; changes in the legal and
regulatory environment in which Primo
Water operates; Primo Water's
ability to adequately address the challenges and risks associated
with its international operations and address difficulties in
complying with laws and regulations including the U.S. Foreign
Corrupt Practices Act and the U.K. Bribery Act of 2010; the impact
on Primo Water's tax obligations and
effective tax rate arising from changes in local tax laws or
countries adopting more aggressive interpretations of tax laws;
disruptions in Primo Water's
information systems; Primo Water's
ability to securely maintain its customers' confidential or credit
card information, or other private data relating to Primo Water's employees or the Company;
Primo Water's ability to maintain
its quarterly dividend; or credit rating changes.
The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. Readers are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking
statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. Readers are
urged to carefully review and consider the various disclosures,
including but not limited to risk factors contained in Primo Water's Annual Report on Form 10-K and its
quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, as well as other filings with the
securities commissions. Primo Water
does not undertake to update or revise any of these statements
considering new information or future events, except as expressly
required by applicable law.
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SOURCE Primo Water Corporation