Key takeaways:
- Alejandro Rodriguez Bas has stepped in as Grupo Bimbo’s new global CEO following Rafael Pamias’ departure for personal and health reasons.
- Bimbo Bakeries USA will see its own transition when Greg Koehrsen replaces retiring president Tony Gavin.
- The dual leadership changes signal Bimbo’s push to align global and US strategy as the company prepares for its next phase of growth.
Grupo Bimbo has moved quickly to plug a major leadership gap, announcing that Alejandro Rodriguez Bas will take over as chief executive with immediate effect.
The company said outgoing CEO Rafael Pamias is stepping away for ‘personal and health reasons’, ending an 18-month run in the top job. It’s not the kind of transition Bimbo is known for – normally things shift at a gentler pace – but the Mexico City-headquartered conglomerate made a point of thanking Pamias for his work pushing sustainability and consumer focus further up the agenda.
Rodriguez Bas isn’t an outsider parachuted in to shake things up. He joined Bimbo in 2021 and has been running Barcel Global, the snack division that’s been expanding into new regions at a surprising clip. Before landing at Bimbo, he’d already built a long career across the food business: leading Acosta, helping chart new directions at C&S Wholesale Grocers, and running Lala’s operations in Mexico and Central America. He also logged a decade at PepsiCo, including a stint running the Australia-New Zealand business.
Daniel Servitje, Bimbo’s executive chair and long-time figurehead, said the board sees Rodriguez Bas as someone who understands both the ambition and the personality of the company.
“Alejandro has a results-oriented track record, solid commercial and operational experience, and a proven history of driving growth for iconic consumer brands,” said Servitje. “He shares the company’s culture and philosophy with a long-term vision and exceptional leadership. Over the past four years, he has been instrumental in accelerating innovation, expanding the Barcel brand into numerous countries, and establishing manufacturing operations across multiple continents. The board of directors and I are confident that he will excel as CEO and he has our full support to do so.”
Rodriguez Bas said his priority now is to keep strengthening Bimbo’s long-term strategy while staying true to its people-first values. He described his approach as growing the business through strong, high-potential brands and expanding the company’s global reach, all while keeping employees, customers and consumers at the center. His aim, he added, is to continue shaping Grupo Bimbo into a business that’s sustainable, highly productive and firmly grounded in humanity.
Pamias’ departure closes a chapter that began in 2017, when he arrived at Bimbo to run Latin America. He later moved into the COO and sustainability roles before stepping into the CEO seat in 2024.
New leadership also on the way at BBU
A week after the CEO swap in Mexico, Bimbo confirmed that its US operation is also getting a new boss.
Starting January 1, 2026, Greg Koehrsen will take over as president of Bimbo Bakeries USA (BBU), succeeding Tony Gavin, who’s retiring after more than 40 years in the baking sector.
Koehrsen’s route to the top has been anything but conventional. He started his working life as a schoolteacher in Pennsylvania, then pivoted into consulting at Bain, then to the Dr Pepper Snapple Group for a short spell, then to Urban Outfitters before arriving at Bimbo in 2014.
Once inside the company, he moved through strategy, corporate development and GM roles, eventually running sweet baked goods, the East business unit and later Barcel USA. Most recently, he’s been the EVP responsible for helping the business overhaul its commercial approach.
Gavin, meanwhile, leaves behind a steady, low-drama tenure. He took the US presidency in 2023 after decades with businesses that Bimbo absorbed in earlier acquisitions. The company credited him with stabilizing operations during the messy post-pandemic period when the industry was still wrestling with staff shortages and unpredictable supply chains. His retirement closes a long chapter for a leader who’s been part of the American baking landscape since the 1980s.
Taken together, the two leadership changes suggest Bimbo is lining up a more unified strategic push across its global footprint. The timing may be close, but the company – which operates in more than 30 countries - insists the moves are about strengthening continuity as it adjusts to a fast-shifting market and an even faster-moving consumer.
