Brandon Hofmann, president of Parker’s Kitchen, is expected to become the next CEO of the popular Southeastern c-store chain, a company spokesperson confirmed to C-Store Dive.
Hofmann will succeed current CEO and founder Greg Parker, who has been the only chief executive in the company’s 49-year history. Parker will become executive chairman, while current chief development officer John Rudolfs will replace Hofmann as company president.
A Parker’s spokesperson said on Tuesday that the company is not ready to announce when this leadership transition will commence.
Should the shift occur this year, Hofmann’s rise to CEO will come after a quarter century with Savannah, Georgia-based Parker’s. He joined the company in 1997 as a third-shift customer service representative when he was 19 and eventually worked his way up to manage the company’s operations, marketing strategy and popular Southern-style foodservice program.
Hofmann was chief operating officer prior to being named president in 2021. As president, Hofmann has spearheaded Parker’s store operations, foodservice, fuel, maintenance and marketing platforms.
Since joining Parker’s as chief development officer in 2021, Rudolfs has managed the company’s growth and network development strategy. Parker’s growth plans have been a point of focus lately as the company, which had 76 locations as of October 2023, aims to surpass 150 stores in the next two years.
Prior to joining Parker’s, Rudolfs was chief development officer for MAPCO, where he managed the retailer’s growth strategy and capital planning. Before that, he was an executive vice president for Murphy USA.
Greg Parker is one of the longest tenured CEOs among both regional and national c-store chains in the U.S. He has also been one of the industry’s more prominent leaders over the years, having been vice chairman of research for NACS, chairman of the BPAmoco Marketers Association, and a member of both the Pepsi Retail Advisory Council and Coca-Cola Retail Advisory Committee.
The news about Parker’s succession plan was first reported by CSP Daily News.
