William Toler, former chief executive officer of AdvancePierre Foods and president of Pinnacle Foods Finance L.L.C., has been named president and c.e.o. of Hostess Brands, L.L.C. He succeeds longtime Hostess executive Rich Seban, who has been named vice-chairman. Mr. Seban had been president and chief operating officer since Hostess was acquired by HB Holdings L.L.C., an affiliate of private equity groups Apollo Global Management L.L.C. and Metropoulos & Co., for $410 million in March 2013.
“Hostess Brands has become a dynamic and highly successful business over the past year, and our unique and widely recognized brands, including Twinkies, HoHos, CupCakes and Ding Dongs, have reconnected with consumers,” said Dean Metropoulos, chairman of Hostess. “As we look forward to the company’s exciting future, it is important to continue to strengthen the organization and strive to reach new levels of growth through further market expansion, new products and acquisitions.
“Rich has been critical to the successful transition of Hostess and will remain actively involved in the management of the business. I look forward to strengthening our team and working with Bill, who will bring his talents and energy to the next phase of the company’s growth. Both individuals will be key to further penetrating our markets and expanding our product offerings to appeal to a broader base of consumers. We have been very pleased with the support of our consumers and retail partners and are excited about what’s ahead.”
In addition to AdvancePierre Foods and Pinnacle, Mr. Toler was president of Aurora Foods, Inc. He also was president of North America for ICG Commerce, president of Campbell Sales Co., vice-president of sales and integrated logistics at Nabisco, and vice-president/ national sales manager for Reckitt & Colman. He began his career at Procter & Gamble, where he worked from 1981 to 1989.
