Krispy Kreme announces new batch of board nominees

USA – Kripsy Kreme Inc. has nominated Bernardo Hees, the former CEO of Kraft Heinz Co., and Patrick Grismer, the chairman of Panera Brands Inc., as part of a new slate of directors for its board.

Along with Hees and Grismer, two additional nominees—Easwaran Sundaram, the former chief digital and technology officer of JetBlue, and Gordon von Bretten, a senior partner at JAB Holding Co., which is the parent company of Krispy Kreme and Panera—will stand for election at Krispy Kreme’s annual meeting on June 17.

Krispy Kreme has announced plans for Hees to chair a newly formed strategy and operating committee following the meeting.

Currently, Hees is an operating partner at The Cranemere Group, a diversified holding company based in New York.

He has a strong background in leading global, consumer-facing businesses through transformative growth.

He served as CEO of Kraft Heinz from 2015 until June 2019, prior to which he was the CEO of HJ Heinz Holding Corp. from 2013.

He also led Burger King Worldwide Holdings Inc. as CEO from 2010 to 2013 and was the CEO of América Latina Logística, a Brazilian logistics company, from 2005 to 2010.

Additionally, Hees currently serves on the boards of Bunge Ltd. and Avis Budget Group, where he was the executive chairman from 2020 to May 2024.

Patrick Grismer, who has been the board chair of Panera Brands since November 2024, is expected to join Krispy Kreme’s audit and finance committee once elected as an independent director.

With over 35 years of financial executive experience, Grismer has previously served as the chief financial officer at Starbucks from 2018 to 2021, Hyatt Hotels from 2016 to 2018, and Yum! Brands, where he held various financial leadership roles, including CFO from 2012 to 2016.

Independent director nominee Easwaran Sundaram brings over 25 years of expertise in technology, transformation, and supply chain management.

He is the founder of JetBlue Technology Ventures and was formerly the digital and technology chief at JetBlue. Sundaram also served as senior vice president of the global supply chain and global chief information officer for Pall Corp.

Gordon von Bretten, another director nominee, joined JAB Holding in April 2024 and previously worked for four years as the chief transformation officer at Coty Inc., where he remains on the board.

At the annual meeting, current directors standing for re-election include Charlesworth, former Chipotle Mexican Grill executive Marissa Andrada, former Bloomin’ Brands CEO David Deno, former Mondelez International executive Gerhard Pleuhs, and JAB partner Patricia Capel.

The company confirmed that former Mars Inc. executives Paul Michaels (CEO from 2004 to 2015) and Philip Telfer, former Panera Bread COO Debbie Roberts, JAB executives Olivier Goudet and David Bell, and Novartis executive Michelle Weese were not nominated for re-election.

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