Aureus Inc. Adds Three Industry Veterans to its Advisory Board
ATLANTA, GA / ACCESSWIRE / January 15, 2020 / Aureus, Inc. (OTC PINK:ARSN) ("Aureus" or the "Company") (www.AureusNOW.com) an emerging leader in the food brand development industry which owns the Yuengling's Ice Cream brand ("Yuengling's Ice Cream" or "Yuengling's") (www.yuenglingsicecream.com) including all intellectual property and its distribution at select retail locations is very excited to announce the addition of Tom Cardella, Hal Kravitz, and Bill Hackett to its advisory board.
Tom Cardella, a 38-year veteran of the global beer industry, is the founder of Cardella & Associates LLC, a beverage industry-consulting firm. He was formerly president and CEO of the Tenth and Blake Beer Company, the craft, import and cider division of MillerCoors. Tom also served as eastern division president for MillerCoors, where he was responsible for all commercial operations in the eastern half of the U.S. Prior to the merger with Coors, Tom was executive vice president of sales and distribution for Miller Brewing Company, a position he took in August 2006. At Miller, Tom also served as senior vice president, international brands and market development. Earlier in his career, Tom held a variety of sales and marketing management positions at Miller before joining InBev in 1996.
"I have great respect for the Yuengling name as they are one of the most successful legacy breweries in the US. I find it a unique and intriguing opportunity to now be able to support Yuengling's Ice Cream, an iconic brand with great potential."
Hal Kravitz spent more than 30 years as a leader within the Coca-Cola Company including roles in general management, strategy, operations marketing, sales and revenue management. Hal began his career with Coca-Cola in 1983 where he held positions of increasing responsibility in the field and at the company's headquarters focusing on sales, marketing, and operations. In 2001, after several other managerial roles within Coca-Cola North America, Hal was named Vice President and General Manager of Coca-Cola Enterprises' operations in the Southeastern United States, a business unit responsible for $2.5B in annual revenue. After seven successful years at CCE in his Southeastern GM role as well as serving as Chief Revenue Officer, Hal came back to the Coca-Cola Company to become president of Coca-Cola North America's Glaceau division post acquisition where he led its operations as President of this newly formed business unit, including oversight of brands vitaminwater, smartwater, Powerade, Fuze, and the company's energy drink brands. Hal then led the division's initial integration into the broader Coca-Cola North America business unit in 2009. After stepping down from Coca-Cola in 2013, Hal was a founding member of InterContinenal Beverage Capital, a New-York based merchant bank focused on advisory services and investment in the CPG and beverage industries. Hal has spent the last six years of his career helping entrepreneurial companies and emerging beverage brands drive growth and profitability. He most recently served as CEO and Board member of AQUAhydrate, a premium bottled water company owned by Ron Burkle, Yucaipa companies, actor Mark Wahlberg, and music industry mogul and entrepreneur Sean "P Diddy" Combs. Hal currently serves as President of the Certified Management Group, an outsourced sales and brand management company and division of Advantage Solutions.
"I'm thrilled to be part of the Yuengling's Ice Cream Advisory Board. The brand's strong heritage of high quality and strong consumer demand and relevance gives it significant category crossover potential. I look forward to being involved in building a long term profitable and sustainable business."
Bill Hackett spent more than three decades in the beer industry, recently retiring as Constellation Brands' Executive Vice President and Chairman of the Beer Division.
Bill joined Barton Beers in 1984 as National Sales Manager. He assumed additional responsibilities as the business grew through the 1980's. In 1993, Bill was named President of Barton Beers and continued in this capacity when Barton became Crown Imports in 2007 and when Constellation acquired the US rights for the business in 2013.
In 2016, Bill assumed the role of Chairman of Beer and since then has provided strategic counsel to the Constellation Beer Division leadership team. Throughout his tenure with the company, Bill has played a critical role in developing and guiding the business strategy and long term vision for Constellation's beer business.
As previously reported, Bill Hayde, the Principal of Waterside Capital Advisors, is one of the key bankers in Aureus' investment banking team. Mr. Hayde brings more than thirty years as an Investment Banker/Fund manager and is co-founder of Intercontinental Beverage Capital (www.inbevcapital.com) and the Interim Opportunity Fund. With strong ties to the food and beverage industry, Mr. Hayde was instrumental in bringing in Mr. Cardella, Mr. Kravitz, and Mr. Hackett in an advisory capacity.
