EMERYVILLE, Calif., U.S. – Peet’s Coffee & Tea announced last week the appointment of Paul Clayton to President, Retail. Clayton joins Peet’s in early November and will report directly to President and CEO, Dave Burwick.
In this role, Clayton will lead Peet’s retail business, which includes 237 company-owned stores across the United States.
He will oversee all aspects of retail, including store and people operations, store design, merchandising, pricing, real estate and property development.
“We are extremely excited and fortunate to welcome Paul to the Peet’s family,” said Burwick. “With his strong leadership skills and proven track record of growing retail concepts ranging from QSR to specialty to full service and non-food, Paul will play a critical role leading our retail business as we continue to grow.”
Clayton is a world-class retail executive with three decades of experience in a variety of specialty retail, food and beverage industries. Most recently, he was CEO of Umami Restaurant Group, a specialty gourmet burger restaurant chain headquartered in Los Angeles.
Prior to that, Paul held retail leadership positions with a variety of companies including Meineke Car Centers and Palm Foods. Paul served as President and CEO of Jamba Juice from 2000 to 2008 where he helped build the company into a nationally recognized brand with presence in more than 20 states. He began his career in marketing and general management at Burger King.
“I am excited to join the Peet’s team and apply my deep expertise in specialty food and beverage retail to the Peet’s brand,” said Clayton. “I look forward to helping the organization continue to grow and expand in new markets as well as elevate our customer experience.”
Peet’s Coffee & Tea continues to accelerate its growth in the U.S. premium coffee market. The company has tripled its growth rate over the past few years, driven by its retail expansion into markets such as Chicago and Washington D.C., strong growth of its K-Cup products, and acquisition of Mighty Leaf Tea last summer.
Earlier this month, Peet’s announced an agreement to acquire ownership of Stumptown Coffee Roasters, the premier third wave coffee company and a leading player in the fast-growing ready-to-drink cold brew coffee business. Stumptown will operate independently while having full access to Peet’s resources and scale.
