People on the Move: Casey's, The Hershey Co. & Parkland

Celsius also promoted Tyler Bohannon to executive vice president of North American sales and Lex Shankle to executive vice president of global sales. Bohannon will lead the company's direct store delivery (DSD) network, field sales and U.S. regional key accounts, while Shankle will lead the global sales team across EMEA and APAC. 

Bohannon and Shankle will continue to report to Celsius Chief Commercial Officer Tony Guilfoyle.

Bohannon has more than 20 years of experience in the beverage industry and was previously Celsius executive vice president of field sales. He has held key leadership roles at major beverage companies including Nestlé Waters, Coors Brewing, Rockstar Energy and PepsiCo, where he led DSD operations and e-commerce.

Shankle is a seasoned executive with extensive experience in sales, marketing and account management across the beverage and consumer goods industries. He previously was Celsius executive vice president of North American sales. Before joining the company, Shankle held leadership roles at Rockstar Energy, HYPE Energy and DenTek Oral Care, where he contributed to brand growth and increased retail distribution.

ClearDemand

ClearDemand, a leader in artificial intelligence (AI)-powered price optimization and competitive intelligence, added Ryan Licari as its new chief revenue officer (CRO). Licari brings more than 20 years of experience driving revenue growth and building high-performing teams. 

With the recent merger between ClearDemand and Bungee Tech, Licari will lead the evolution of competitive intelligence and price optimization solutions to rapidly drive customer ROI. He will drive ClearDemand's go-to-market strategy, overseeing a results-driven team to accelerate growth and deepen partnerships with retailers worldwide.

Licari's career includes leadership roles at Oracle, Salesforce and Visier. Most recently, he led growth initiatives at iTradeNetwork. This experience, coupled with his expertise in data-driven decision-making and AI innovation, will help propel ClearDemand's mission: empowering retailers to increase profitability, competitiveness and customer loyalty with AI-driven pricing solutions, the company stated.

The Hershey Co.

The Hershey Co. named Tiffany Menyhart its chief customer officer and Stacy Taffet as its chief growth officer.

With 30 years of sales and consumer packaged goods (CPG) experience, including 15 years in confection, Menyhart will lead Hershey's U.S. Confection sales team to advance the company's vision of becoming a leading snacking powerhouse. Joining from Kraft Heinz, Menyhart has a proven record of driving profitable growth, creating transformational change and elevating relationships with retail partners, Hershey said.

[Related content: The Hershey Co. Lays Out CEO Succession Plan]

"Tiffany's visionary leadership, extensive experience across confection and snacking categories, and focus on the customer will guide our commercial organization's next growth phase to meet the evolving needs of our retail partners and consumers," said Andrew Archambault, president, U.S. confection, The Hershey Co. "She brings enthusiasm and a fresh outlook, driving us towards our 2025 goals and beyond."

Menyhart holds an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) from Vanderbilt University. Recognized as a Woman of Influence in the food industry, Menyhart is known for building strong teams, leading through change and promoting career development. She currently serves on the FMI Foundation Board.

Taffet will be responsible for driving transformative growth strategies across the company's expanding snacks portfolio, which includes iconic brands like Hershey's, Reese's, Jolly Rancher and Dot's Homestyle Pretzels.

She is a seasoned marketing executive with 20 years of transformative leadership experience, including 15 years in CPG and a distinguished career at PepsiCo spanning multiple brand portfolios — most recently as senior vice president of beverage portfolio strategy and marketing.

Taffet will spearhead Hershey's enterprise strategy and key growth capabilities encompassing media and creative investments, marketing innovation, research and development, commercial and consumer intelligence, and brand reputation management.

Recognized nationally with awards such as Brand Innovators Top 100 Women in Brand Marketing and AdAge Women to Watch, Taffet is not only a marketing leader but also an engaged community contributor, serving on boards of nonprofit organizations. She received her MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania.

NACS

NACS, the global trade association for convenience and fuel retailers, added six new hires to its growing team.

1. Raei Tesfazghi is a research and education solutions coordinator. He is the customer-facing sales and support representative for NACS research products, including the "State of the Industry Report" and Talent Insights Dashboard.
2. Michael Carter is the new instructional designer for the Education Department. In this capacity, he will work closely with members and e-learning partners to create impactful training for the industry.
3. Esmeraldo Orozco joined NACS as grassroots manager for the Government Relations Department. Orozco will lead member engagement in grassroots programs that include the NACS In Store congressional store visits, NACS Day on the Hill, legislative calls to action on vital industry issues and some targeted member fly-ins to visit members of Congress. She previously served as the scheduler to the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and was the cabinet surrogates director for Harris for President.
4. Kiley Hylton joined NACS as marketing manager, events. Most recently she was marketing manager at Merritt Group where she drove strategic marketing plans for Microsoft federal and corporate accounts.
5. Jaden Shemesh is a meetings and events coordinator. He is a recent graduate of from Tufts University.
6. Alison Wong joined NACS as marketing manager, products and services. Most recently, she was at Gartner Digital Markets where she served as senior product marketing specialist.

Parkland Corp.

Parkland Corp. appointed Felipe Bayon and Sue Gove to its board of directors. These appointments reinforce the company’s commitment to strong corporate governance by adding two highly experienced C-suite leaders, Parkland stated.

[Related content: Sunoco LP to Acquire Parkland in $9.1B Deal]

Gove has extensive experience in the retail sector, including holding positions as CEO, chief financial officer and chief operating officer. In addition to a deep understanding of consumer behavior, Gove has led multiple strategic transformations and brings extensive public and private company board experience, including a 12-year tenure at AutoZone Inc., where she spent eight years as chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee. Gove currently serves on the board of directors of LKQ Corp.

Bayon brings more than 30 years of leadership experience in the global energy sector. He previously held senior operational roles with bp plc and served as president and CEO of Ecopetrol S.A., Colombia's largest integrated energy company and one of the largest and most influential corporations in Parkland's international region.

"Felipe and Sue are accomplished executives with expertise in industries and sectors that align with Parkland's business," said Michael Jennings, chair of the board. "Felipe's deep energy industry experience in Parkland's broader international region combined with Sue's extensive retail experience and governance expertise, will be invaluable as the Company explores all options to maximize value for all shareholders."

Parkland has added six independent directors to the board over the past two years to ensure a governance structure that blends relevant expertise with fresh perspectives and organizational continuity, the company stated.

SurgePays Inc.

SurgePays, a technology and wireless telecommunications company, promoted Allison Seyler to vice president of sales. A seasoned technology executive with more than 15 years of success in fintech and telecommunications sales, Seyler is the first female executive to hold this role at SurgePays.

Seyler joined SurgePays in March 2024 as director of sales, where she increased the company's retail partner network and drove a 400% surge in cellular top-up revenues. 

In her expanded role, Seyler will lead the company's sales strategy, focusing on scaling LinkUp Mobile, accelerating prepaid market penetration and broadening SurgePays' digital services portfolio. 

"Allison's impact has already been transformative as evidenced by the expansion of our retail footprint and increased revenues," said Brian Cox, chairman and CEO of SurgePays. "We are confident that her strategic approach will play a pivotal role in driving sustainable growth and long-term shareholder value."

Seyler will lead a team of sales professionals, fostering a results-driven, high-performance culture that empowers her team with the tools to increase the SurgePays distribution footprint nationwide. She holds a B.A. from the University of California, Irvine.

Talking Rain Beverage Co.

Talking Rain, makers of Sparkling Ice, brought on Chelsea Sobran as vice president of convenience channel. She brings a deep understanding of the consumer landscape and spearheads the company's strategic growth in the convenience store market.

"As with other Talking Rain distribution channels, the convenience store channel strategy revolves around meeting our consumers where they are. When our consumers are on the go, they find the convenience store cold vault a great place to pick out and try new products," said Sobran. "Given the pent-up demand for better-for-you beverages, and Talking Rain’s wide range of offerings, we expect to see Talking Rain more than double its c-store sales over the next three years."

Sobran's role entails growing the company's sales footprint by developing and maintaining relationships with the largest and most complex retailers in the convenience channel and ensuring Talking Rain products look irresistible on the shelf. 

Before joining Talking Rain, Sobran spent 10 years at Nestlé Waters North America, where she held roles in sales, analytics and marketing across both Canada and the United States, before moving on to serve as the sales vice president at Keurig Dr Pepper. There she developed and led a sales team for the commercial coffee business unit across convenience, foodservice and hospitality channels.

W. Capra

W. Capra, an end-to-end consulting and services business, appointed Tony Miller as partner. In this role, Miller will focus primarily on the expansion of W. Capra's merger-and-acquisition (M&A) services.

This news comes two months after W. Capra's announcement of a new service dedicated to early-stage M&A for convenience and downstream energy retailing, spearheaded by Partner Lisa Biggs. 

"Tony and I have worked together serving this industry for over 20 years. There is no stronger leader and advisor to help all players navigate the complexities of M&A and to drive the greatest value for each transaction," Biggs said. "The M&A environment is highly competitive in this channel, and Tony's experience will be a tremendous asset to our team and our clients."

Miller brings extensive expertise to W. Capra's M&A services, leveraging 30-plus years in the convenience and fuel retailing channel, as well as CPG industries. Miller recently served as president and CEO of Southwest Convenience Stores and MAPCO Express, both subsidiaries of Delek US Holding, a fortune 500 midstream/downstream company.

Under his guidance, Delek successfully developed and executed a comprehensive strategic growth plan designed to maximize shareholder value. In addition to Miller's vast sell-side and buy-side M&A experience with both large and small transactions, he has an extensive background in sales, marketing, operations and executive leadership.

"In today's competitive world of convenience retailing where brand equity, customer loyalty, and prime real estate are essential, mergers and acquisitions are key levers to value creation," Miller said. "I look forward to delivering strategies and portfolios that capture optimal transaction value and detailed action plans to ensure these benefits are realized."

WorkJam

WorkJam, a leading digital frontline workplace, appointed Diane Randolph, the former chief information officer (CIO) of Ulta Beauty, to the company's board of directors. 

Randolph, a seasoned retail and technology executive, brings decades of leadership experience in digital transformation, omnichannel strategy, supply chain innovation and customer engagement.

Randolph has held executive leadership roles at some of the most recognized retail organizations. Prior to Ulta, she was CIO at Reitmans Canada Limited, where she spearheaded the company's first e-commerce and supply chain initiatives. She has also served on the Executive Committee of the National Retail Federation CIO Council.

In addition to her operational leadership, Randolph serves on the boards of Dollar Tree, Shoe Carnival, XCCommerce and Flexe Inc., contributing her expertise in retail technology, cybersecurity and enterprise risk management.