Ace names new board members
Ace Hardware, following its recent 2023 annual meeting of stockholders, has elected member director David W. Cripe, and non-member Eric W. Lauterbach, each to their first terms on the company’s board of directors.
“As a fifth-generation owner and operator of 13 Ace Hardware stores, as well as leading one of Ace’s largest retailer store groups, David Cripe brings a wealth of operational experience and proven best practices that results in consistent growth,” said Brett Stephenson, chairman of the board for Ace Hardware.
“Eric Lauterbach brings a wealth of diverse business knowledge with his consumer-packaged goods and e-commerce experience that will serve us well as we continue to invest in our online capabilities and presence,” said Stephenson.
[Related article: Ace sales, income lower in Q1.]
Cripe is vice president of Whitmore Investments, Inc., a 13-store Ace Hardware chain located in Wilmington, Illinois, and the surrounding communities.
Whitmore Hardware was established in 1896 in Wilmington, affiliated with Ace in 1975, and is now a fifth-generation, family-owned and operated Ace Hardware store. He has worked for Whitmore Ace Hardware since 2002 and has been an owner since 2013.
Eric Lauterbach is the president of Peet’s Coffee, a premium coffee roaster with retail coffee shops, e-commerce and consumer-packaged goods. For this more than $1 billion, 5,000-person company. He began his career 25 years ago at Procter & Gamble.
Ace Hardware also reported its shareholders re-elected non-member director Karen May and member director Matthew Mazzone to the Ace Hardware board.
May joined the board in 2017 and is the chair of the audit and finance committee and member of the compensation and human resources committee and the nominating and governance committee, said the company.
Mazzone joined the board in 2020 and is a member of the retail supply chain committee and retail stores and services committee, said the firm. He is president of Mazzone Hardware Corp., a four-store chain located in New York City.
