Primo Water announces CEO retirement plans

Primo Water Corporation has announced that Tom Harrington, the company’s CEO and member of the board of directors since January 2019, intends to retire.

Harrington’s target end date is 31 December 2023, and to ensure a smooth transaction he will continue to serve as CEO and on the board of directors until the board has identified and appointed a successor.

Harrington said: “It has been an honour to lead Primo Water’s talented team through a critical and transformative period during my tenure as CEO. Our strategy is clearly working, we’re pleased with our past accomplishments and we’re even more excited about our future. With our strategy in place and exciting prospects for the future, now is the right time to begin the transition to Primo Water’s next phase of leadership.”

He continued: “Together, we have built a powerful pure-play water platform that benefits from a large and growing revenue base. I am confident in our team’s ability to build on our momentum to drive long-term growth and value creation.”

Jerry Fowden, chairman of the board, commented: “On behalf of the board, I want to thank Tom for his significant contributions and dedicated years of service to Primo Water. Since his appointment as CEO in 2019, Tom has played an instrumental role in transforming Primo Water into a leading pure-play water company, leading our response to the Covid-19 pandemic and meaningfully engaging with our stakeholders, shareowners, customers, communities and associates.”

The board has initiated a search to identify the company’s next CEO and says that it “has engaged a leading executive search firm to assist in the process”.

In order to facilitate a comprehensive process, the board will consider both internal and external candidates.

Fowden added: “The board and management team are committed to ensuring a smooth transition, and we are grateful that we’ll continue to benefit from Tom’s experience and perspective throughout this process. As the board conducts its search for Tom’s successor, we are focused on identifying a strong leader with a proven track record of operating successfully at scale while defining and executing a growth strategy driven by operational excellence and world-class talent development.”