PepsiCo’s Hoytink to become Hershey US president

HERSHEY, PA. — Longtime PepsiCo Inc. executive Heather Hoytink is slated to join The Hershey Co. next month as president of its US business.

Plans call for Hoytink, currently senior vice president and chief commercial officer for US away-from-home beverages at PepsiCo, to start at Hershey on July 8, the candy and snacks company said. In the role, she will oversee Hershey’s US commercial business, leading execution across the unit’s confection, salty and protein snacking portfolio.

Hoytink will take over the post formerly held by Andrew Archambault, who left Hershey in May to join nutrition, beverage and wellness brands company Nutrabolt as president and chief operating officer.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Heather to Hershey,” said Kirk Tanner, president and chief executive officer of The Hershey Co. “She’s an outstanding people leader, with deep customer relationships, the operating discipline to execute at scale and a track record of growth that will accelerate our US business. Her experience leading some of the largest, most complex customer and commercial organizations in the industry makes her exceptionally well-suited to lead our team into the next generation of growth.”

Hoytink brings more than 20 years of experience from PepsiCo, including various sales and operations leadership roles. Most recently, she has led the North America beverage and commercialization strategy for the away-from-home channel, partnering with the industry’s largest national customers to fuel growth and shape the consumer experience for PepsiCo brands, Hershey noted.

Before that, she served as president of the South Division for PepsiCo Beverages North America, driving top-line growth and margin expansion in a large, diverse region and earning a reputation as a transformational commercial leader, according to Hershey. Hoytink’s earlier roles at PepsiCo also include serving as senior vice president of commercial and as senior vice president of foodservice sales. She joined PepsiCo in 2006 as large format business development manager after three years as a district sales manager for Philip Morris.

Hershey said Hoytink also will help advance the company’s ONE Hershey commercial model and drive growth across away-from-home, omnichannel, digital and other emerging channels. Launched in mid-March, ONE Hershey unifies the company’s sweet, salty and protein businesses under a single US commercial operating structure, which follows up on a US brand integration strategy that Tanner unveiled in February.

“I’m excited to join Hershey at such a dynamic moment for the business,” said Hoytink, who was the first woman to be a division president at PepsiCo US beverages. “Hershey’s iconic brands, strong customer partnerships and talented team create an incredible foundation for growth. I’m energized by building winning teams, investing in people and working closely with customers to unlock new opportunities. I look forward to partnering with the team to build on existing momentum, continue delivering for customers and consumers and drive the next chapter of growth together.”

With $11.7 billion in annual revenue, Hershey fields a roster of more than 85 brands in 65 countries, with products spanning the confection, salty and functional snacking categories. Brands include Hershey’s, Reese’s, Kisses, Kit Kat, Jolly Rancher, Twizzlers and Ice Breakers in chocolate and candy; SkinnyPop, LesserEvil, Pirate’s Booty and Dot’s Homestyle Pretzels in salty snacks; and ONE Brands and Fulfil in protein bars.