GNC announces new leadership, reveals plans for 2021
GNC has named Josh Burris the Chief Executive Officer and Cam Lawrence of Chief Financial Officer.
Burris joined the Company as Chief US Officer in 2019 and most recently held the role of President, GNC. Lawrence joined the Company in 2019 as SVP Finance, Chief Accounting Officer and has acted as Interim CFO over the past several months.
"We are pleased to have great leaders at the helm of GNC at this pivotal time in its evolution," said Yichen Zhang, Chairman of GNC. "We have been working closely with Josh and Cam since Harbin Pharmaceutical Group Holding Co., Ltd. acquired GNC in 2020, and are impressed by the strides their teams have made in evolving GNC's business over the past year. We are confident the business will continue to capitalize on significant growth opportunities under their leadership."
Straight outta bankruptcy
“Having emerged from bankruptcy under new ownership with a stronger balance sheet and a right-sized store portfolio, we are positioned to thrive in a category that is experiencing explosive growth,” said Burris.
Burris told NutraIngredients-USA that Harbin has provided GNC with greater opportunities for expansion and brand investment that will make their products more accessible than ever, “And their investments in our business are allowing us to capitalize on significant growth opportunities in the health & wellness space.”
This year, Burris said GNC is executing on strategies that will position the company to meet growing demand and bring innovative products to consumers wherever they are, faster. To meet that goal, GNC recently partnered with delivery service Shipt to bring same-day delivery of GNC health and wellness products to consumers across the country.
In focus
This year, GNC told us that they are specifically focused on:
- Revamping the in-store experience through new training for store coaches, providing products at multiple price points, and next year, undergoing remodeling to make stores easier to navigate.
- Investing in e-commerce business – both in the US and abroad – as well as new omnichannel options such as buy-online-pick-up-in-store and a new app.
- Building a best-in-class supply chain and establishing key supplier partnerships so they can quickly react to trends, develop and deliver products to consumers faster and meet increased demand.
- Expanding their global footprint as the company moves into new markets and grows in existing ones.
- Doubling down on strategic wholesale partnerships to provide consumers with convenient access to GNC products through the retailers they shop daily.
Partnerships add flavor
Burris said flavor innovation continues to be an important way to connect with a variety of consumers.
“A strategic partnership with the Girl Scouts of America led to the successful launch of Girl Scout cookie-inspired flavors in the GNC Total Lean and AMP lines. We also partnered with Hershey to launch Jolly Rancher flavored pre-workout supplements in the Beyond Raw Lit product line. Both of these initiatives are exceeding expectations, and we will continue to launch more exciting products through these partnerships.”
The new CEO added that GNC will also continue to offer new flavors and new items in categories such as pre-workout and proteins throughout the year.
Getting personal
GNC plans to continue to respond to the increased consumer demand for solutions that support wellness and immunity through offering multivitamins, Vitapak programs and immunity-focused solutions in GNC and new locations outside of GNC.
The company’s personalized wellness brand, GNC4U, recently expanded its ongoing partnership with 1health to bring self-administered testing kits for COVID-19 online at GNC.com.
“This is only the latest milestone in our mission to deliver more personalized and innovative solutions for our customers. We are excited to build on this partnership and others like it in the coming months,” Burris told NutraIngredients-USA.
