Daiya appoints new CEO
by CM Staff
Chief Marketing Officer, Melanie Domer will assume a new role as Chief Commercial Officer, overseeing marketing and sales while John Kelly, VP, Consumer Marketing assumes the role of Chief Marketing Officer.
VANCOUVER — The Board of Directors at Daiya Foods has announced the appointment of Hajime Fujita to the role of Chief Executive Officer. Mr Fujita, a former Director at Daiya will lead all global operations throughout North America and the brand’s continued international expansion.
Mr Fujita brings with him global experience in business and financial planning throughout the US and the Asia-Pacific region. He joins from Daiya’s parent company, Otsuka Pharmaceuticals, where he held the role of Vice President, Business Planning. Mr Fujita was a player in Otsuka’s acquisition of Daiya in 2017 before joining Daiya himself and serving as Director, Financial Planning and Analysis from 2018 to 2021. Following this, he assumed a seat on Daiya’s board as part of a Vice President role at Otsuka America. Amongst his key achievements at Daiya was playing a lead role in the development of Daiya’s manufacturing facility and office building in Burnaby, British Columbia: the largest stand-alone plant-based food facility in North America.
Mr. Fujita comments:
“There is enormous potential in the Daiya brand to push the highly competitive plant-based category to new heights, particularly through product innovation and bold marketing. I’m thrilled to be rejoining Daiya at such a dynamic period in the wider cultural conversation around plant-based eating and I look forward to working with our fantastic team in writing the next chapter of our amazing brand story.”
Alongside Mr Fujita’s appointment, the Daiya Board of Directors made two further changes to the leadership team. Chief Marketing Officer, Melanie Domer will assume a new role as Chief Commercial Officer, overseeing marketing and sales while John Kelly, VP, Consumer Marketing assumes the role of Chief Marketing Officer.
Ms Domer comments: “By bringing sales and marketing together, Daiya will be even better positioned to reach and engage with consumers all along the shopper journey, bringing more people to plant-based eating, and driving growth of our categories.” Mr Kelly added “I’m honored to lead Daiya’s marketing efforts as we focus on accelerating category growth and maximizing the potential of the Daiya brand as the undisputed leader in plant-based foods across North America.”
