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Hamdi Ulukaya
Founder, CEO and President
Dubbed “the Steve Jobs of yogurt” by Forbes in 2011, Hamdi Ulukaya has built a nearly $1 billion business in just five years – during this country’s worst economic crisis in decades. Led by his innovation and insight, energy and passion, genuine and authentic spirit, marketing acumen and relentless drive to give consumers the products they want and deserve, Chobani is now America’s #1 selling yogurt brand.
But Hamdi’s success is rooted in humble beginnings. He grew up in Turkey working his family’s third-‐ generation sheep farm and feta cheese operations. In 1994, he moved to the U.S. to learn English and study business, with hopes to leave his family’s dairy business and pursue his own path. However, during his time at SUNY Albany, he couldn’t help but notice a huge gap in the dairy product offerings between Turkey and America.
With a mission to bring superior products to the U.S. market, Hamdi’s entrepreneurial vision led to the creation of Johnstown, N.Y. based Euphrates Feta in 2002, which quickly became one of the most successful wholesale feta cheese companies in the country.
Three years after founding Euphrates, Hamdi stumbled upon a classified ad on his desk for a Central New York yogurt plant that had recently been closed by Kraft. After initially throwing the ad away, “there were a million reasons not to buy it,” Ulukaya trusted his gut and fished it out of the trash. He went to see the plant that day, decided to buy it on the spot and officially founded Chobani in 2005. Hamdi immediately hired four ex-‐Kraft employees and began updating the plant facilities.
It took more over 18 months to perfect the recipe for Chobani and in October 2007, the first cups hit store shelves. Initial retail interest for Chobani primarily came from high-‐end, specialty stores. Despite
his need for revenue, Hamdi held out for placement on mainstream yogurt shelves based on his belief that everyone deserved access to “good” yogurt. And in 2009, Hamdi’s conviction paid off when Stop & Shop, New England’s largest retailer, signed on. Other major retailers quickly followed suit.
Hamdi’s New Berlin, N.Y. yogurt plant, which used to see one milk truck a day, now uses over three million pounds of milk a day and ships nearly 2 million cases each week. Ulukaya spearheaded development on Chobani’s 2nd production facility in Twin Falls, Idaho, which was completed in just 326 days following a $450 million investment. At nearly 1 million square feet, the new Twin Falls plant is the largest yogurt manufacturing facility in the world by milk volume.
Under Hamdi Ulukaya’s leadership, Chobani has grown from five employees to over 1,700 strong. Amidst this rapid expansion, Hamdi has managed to keep a cohesive, contagious culture alive and well in his booming facility. From the company’s offices and production facilities, to its relationships with its local communities and farmers, business partners and vendors, all the way to the consumer, Chobani has never faltered from its company philosophy, nothing but good.
In 2007, Hamdi initiated Chobani’s 10% program, which directed 10% of brand profits to charitable groups. In 2010, he took this one step further, creating the Shepherd’s Gift Foundation, an independent 501c3. Founded in honor of his mother, a woman who lived her life in the spirit of a shepherd – an expression in Turkey used to describe people who give without expecting anything in return – the Foundation gives 10% of all Chobani post-‐tax profits to people working for positive, long lasting change. To date, the Shepherd’s Gift Foundation has awarded millions of dollars to over 50 organizations worldwide.
Hamdi is an entrepreneur who recognized the opportunity to bring high-‐quality, authentic dairy products to American consumers in a mass way. His vision for Chobani effectively transformed the U.S. yogurt category and sent longtime industry leaders scrambling to catch up. All the while, he never lost sight of his goal: to make honestly-‐positioned, high quality, fairly-‐priced products so that everyone — regardless of income or geographic location — could have access to “good” yogurt.
For his leadership, career achievements and personal qualities that inspire others to excel, Hamdi received the 2012 National Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award as well as the Small Business Association’s 2012 Entrepreneurial Success Award. He was inducted into the 19th class of the American Advertising Federation Advertising Hall of Achievement in 2011 and is also an active community member and sits on the Advisory Boards of the Pathfinder Village, American Turkish Council and Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Hamdi resides in Norwich, N.Y. When he’s not at the Chobani plant, he spends his time traveling, sailing and with his German Shepherds, Panya and Cedric.
Kyle O’Brien Executive Vice President of Sales
Kyle O’Brien leads the global sales initiatives for Chobani Global Holdings, Inc., and is involved in all core aspects of business development for the company and its family of brands: Chobani Greek Yogurt — America’s #1 selling yogurt brand — Chobani Champions and Gippsland Dairy. With over 20 years of foodservice, retail, business development and operations experience, Kyle has been instrumental in spearheading Chobani’s launch. Since joining Chobani in 2006, he has helped grow the company from a Central New York start up to a now $1 billion dollar global enterprise. His vision to make Chobani available to mass consumers led him to successfully secure national and global distribution in several key markets — a vision that leads Chobani’s continued success today. Based in Charlotte, N.C., Kyle has built Chobani’s sales force from one (himself) to over 45 employees strong. However, Kyle’s impact extends well beyond the sales department. His energy is tangible throughout the organization as his passion and ability to motivate others has been instrumental in defining and fostering Chobani’s positive, tight-‐knit, familial culture, which drives passion throughout Chobani’s 1,700+ person global workforce. Kyle believes that in order to move forward, you have to give back. He is involved in service projects for his local community and church. He also works closely with Chobani’s charitable arm, the Shepherd’s Gift Foundation, which gives 10% of the company’s post-‐tax profits to charities worldwide. In his free time, Kyle enjoys the three “R’s:” reading, riding his road bike, and the Red Sox. He is an avid traveler and enjoys spending time with his family.