Todd Lachman’s Post

Sovos Brands was grounded in an insight – challenger brands were gaining share from the largest brands in the store. However, large consumer products companies were built to grow billion dollar brands, not scale challenger brands. It was clear to me that that there was an opportunity to create a new company to unlock the growth potential of smaller, on-trend brands. Sovos Brands was built-for-purpose with the talent, capabilities and culture to acquire, integrate and grow one-of-a-kind brands - highly differentiated and authentic, with delicious, high-quality products, all supporting a premium positioning. If Large CPG was Food 1.0, Sovos Brands would be Food 2.0. We started with our simple vision and six people working out of my house in 2016. Through courage and a fair amount of sweat, the idea became a reality with our first acquisition in early 2017 in partnership with Advent International. I am incredibly proud that we built a company from scratch that delivered over $1 billion in annual net sales; was consistently one of the fastest growing food companies of scale; grew the Rao’s franchise 10X since acquisition to $775M in sales; and delivered double-digit growth every quarter since we went public in September 2021. Last week, we closed the sale of Sovos Brands to Campbell's for $2.7B, delivering a 92% return from our IPO price. I am even more proud that we created a company where people were excited to come to work; a company that strived to be horizontal versus vertical; a company that championed courage, tenacity, candor, and an obsession with growth. And a company where everyone could bring their true authentic selves to work every day.   Building Sovos Brands over these last seven years has been a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and remarkable experience. I am incredibly proud of all that we accomplished together, which would not have been possible had it not been for our employees, business partners, Board of Directors and Advent International.   I want to personally thank my incredibly talented Executive Team – Chris Hall, Kirk Jensen, Lisa O'Driscoll, Risa Cretella, E. Yuri Hermida, Isobel Jones, Tom Lee, Katie Gvazdinskas, and James Potter; my mentor and Board Chair Bill Johnson, along with our dedicated Board of Directors - Jeff Case, David Roberts, Valarie Sheppard, Neha Mathur, Tamer Abuaita, and Mala S.. I also want to thank my children Kyle, Paul and Isabella along with my wife, best friend and trusted advisor Christine. Their love has fueled me and kept me grounded. Serving as the CEO of Sovos Brands has been the ride of a lifetime. While I look back with pride about all we have accomplished, I have strong confidence in the future. The business is in the talented hands of Mark Clouse, Campbell’s, and the many Sovos Brands employees that joined their team. I look forward to seeing the next chapter of growth for our brands.