Kris Maynard, CEO and Chairman of the Board for Essential Ingredients becomes Executive Chairman; Justin Jordan, President and COO becomes CEO.

Kris Maynard, CEO and Chairman of the Board for Essential Ingredients becomes Executive Chairman; Justin Jordan, President and COO becomes CEO.

Lawrenceville, Georgia (December 13, 2021) – Effective, January 1st, 2022, Kris Maynard (current CEO and Chairman of the Board) will assume the role of Executive Chairman and Justin Jordan (current President and Chief Operating Officer) will become Chief Executive Officer of Essential Ingredients.

As Executive Chairman, Kris will remain Chairman of the Board and continue to be actively engaged in the growth of the business. His focus will be primarily in 3 key areas; new ventures to grow and diversify outside of the core business, development of the Board of Directors and executive leadership, and championing the special culture of Essential Ingredients.

As CEO, Justin will lead all operations for Essential Ingredients ensuring our growth is healthy and supports our “Evergreen” aspirations. He will work to further strengthen our relationships with suppliers, customers, business leaders, and communities, leading our team to an even higher level of service and purposeful impact.

Over the past 18 months, the members of our Executive Team, along with our Board of Directors have diligently worked to prepare the organization for these changes. The team at Essential Ingredients is confident that this shift in roles will reinforce continuity, legacy, and strengthen an already strong foundation for growth and impact.

“When our co-founder, Chris Gerlach, and I first began Essential Ingredients in the server closet of an office incubator back in 1996, we knew there was an opportunity to create something special, but the past 25 years have far exceeded any of our expectations as to what Essential Ingredients would become.

Over the past 25 years, we have grown from a small, regional distributor representing a handful of product lines, servicing customers in the Southeastern United States alone- to an international distributor, with over 20 contracted suppliers, now servicing customers throughout the Entire United States and Canada. We’ve committed to hiring top talent, to prioritizing continuous improvement, and to provide outstanding care and service to our customers- all while remaining steadfast in pursuing our primary purpose of ‘being a blessing to others and inspiring others to be a blessing as well’,” says Kris Maynard.

“It was this commitment, along with that of remaining an independent company for generations to come, that enabled us to be recognized as a Certified Evergreen company by the Tugboat Institute in 2020,” continues Maynard. “With this recognition, we established our vision of becoming a 100-year company. However, we knew that to do so, we must invest in the future leaders of Essential Ingredients.

As we look to the next 25+ years, we feel a great sense of anticipation for what’s to come, and we are excited to share these upcoming organizational changes with you. We are so grateful to each of our vital partners, and it is with much excitement that we look to our future and to continuing our partnership with you.”