Campbell Soup Company has announced the appointment of its chief financial officer Mick Beekhuizen as the new president of its Meals & Beverages division with immediate effect.
Beekhuizen will continue as the finance chief until a successor is named, the company noted.
In his new role, he will lead the $4.6 billion (€4.73 billion) division that includes soup, simple meals and beverages in retail and foodservice in North America.
Elsewhere, Chris Foley, currently serving as president of Meals & Beverages unit, will step in as president of the company's $3.9 billion Snacks division, effective immediately.
Beekhuizen and Foley will continue to report to Campbell president and chief executive officer, Mark Clouse.
Clouse commented, "Both Mick and Chris have played significant roles in Campbell’s transformation over the last several years by enhancing our culture and improving our business performance."
Mick Beekhuizen
In September 2019, Beekhuizen joined Campbell as chief financial officer.
During his time at Campbell, he has led corporate strategy and the finance function, including controllership, tax, treasury, corporate audit, investor relations, corporate development, financial planning and analysis, and shared services, as well as the company’s information technology (IT) group, Campbell noted.
Before joining Campbell, Beekhuizen served as executive vice-president and chief financial officer at Chobani, from 2016 to 2019.
He also held the position of executive vice-president and chief financial officer for Education Management Corporation, and managing director at Goldman Sachs in the merchant banking division.
"Mick possesses exceptional strategic thinking and commercial and financial acumen coupled with a focus on operational excellence. He is known for team building and collaboration, which will be instrumental in his new role as we drive the continued growth of our M&B portfolio in large and attractive categories," Clouse added.
Chris Foley
Foley is a company veteran, who served as the chief marketing officer of Pepperidge Farm from 2015 to 2018 and Snacks from 2018 to 2019.
In this period, he played an instrumental role in the acquisition and integration of Snyder’s-Lance, Inc., driving innovation and developing marketing campaigns aimed at achieving growth in sales.
From 2011 to 2013, Foley served as general manager of Campbell’s Australia and New Zealand businesses and general manager of fresh and frozen bakery at Pepperidge Farm.
Commenting on Foley's new role, Clouse stated, "Chris is a proven brand and culture builder with a track record of delivering sustainable growth and developing high-performing teams, which are critical to accelerate the Snacks growth and margin trajectory. I am confident both he and Mick are the right leaders to continue to build our momentum and unlock our full growth potential."
The company also added that the former President of the Snacks division, Valerie Oswalt, has stepped down as she plans to explore an opportunity outside the organisation.
© 2022 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest A Brands news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
