Hershey has launched a search for a new lead executive as current president, CEO and chairman Michele Buck intends to retire next year.
Buck has led the company for the past eight years and plans to step down on 30 June 2026.
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Following the appointment of a new CEO, Buck, who has been Hershey’s chief executive for almost eight years, intends to step down from the board and move to a senior advisor position until her retirement date.
Buck said: “This year will be my 20th at Hershey and, as we embark on a new year, I believe now is the right time to formally activate our succession planning and begin the transition to Hershey’s next leader.”
The company’s board of directors has formed a special committee to oversee the search for its next CEO.
The committee will consider internal and external candidates, working with a “nationally recognised search firm” to guide the selection, according to a statement.
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By GlobalDataHershey lead independent board director Victor Crawford highlighted Buck’s role as a “key architect” in the snack maker’s expansion into “broader” snacking categories, “driving sustainable international growth and developing advanced capabilities and growth platforms that have transformed Hershey into a stronger and more diversified business”.
In December, Hershey’s controlling shareholder, The Hershey Trust, reportedly rejected a takeover approach from confectionery rival Mondelez International.
Last month also saw Michael Del Pozzo, the president of Hershey’s US confectionery business unit, leave the company, prompting Buck to assume direct leadership of the division temporarily.
In November, Hershey lowered its forecasts for its net sales and earnings per share in 2024 amid what Buck called “a challenging consumer environment”.
In the third quarter ended 29 September, Hershey reported net sales of $2.99bn, a marginal decrease from $3.03bn in the corresponding period of 2023.
The company’s gross margin fell to 41.3%, from 44.9% in the same quarter a year earlier. Hershey pointed to factors including rising input costs and “an unfavourable mix”.
Operating profit for the quarter declined 16.6% to $613.2m. Net income dropped 13.9% to $446.3m.
With a global workforce of over 20,000 employees, the snack maker generated $11.2bn in annual revenue in 2023.
Its portfolio includes more than 90 brands, such as Hershey’s, Twizzlers and SkinnyPop, distributed across approximately 80 countries.
