The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf has named Andrew Nathan senior vice president of the Asia Pacific region, a newly created position that began in January, the company said Tuesday.
Nathan replaces Victor Sassoon, who stepped down in January as CEO of the company’s Asia Pacific region.
Nathan will be the primary driver for the Los Angeles-based coffeehouse chain’s growth in Asia. He will be based in Singapore.
Nathan has nearly 20 years of experience in the specialty coffee business, with expertise in leading and growing brands in Asia, the company said. Most recently, he was international director of Domino’s Pizza’s Asia Pacific region, from March 2013 to December 2014, based in Hong Kong.
Prior to Domino’s, he held regional franchise and market leadership positions at Starbucks Coffee, the company said. He began his international career working with the U.S. Peace Corps and the American Red Cross.
Nathan reports to John Dawson, Coffee Bean’s president and CEO.
Sassoon remains a member of Coffee Bean’s board of directors. He and members of his family were the chain’s first franchisees in Singapore and Malaysia, in 1996. Two years later, the family bought the company and built it into a global business.
The chain has more than 960 locations in nearly 30 countries.
In 2013, Coffee Bean said Advent International, CDIB Capital and Mirae Asset Private Equity had joined to acquire a significant equity position in the company. Sassoon family members remain substantial shareholders.
CDIB is the overseas investment arm of Asian merchant banking group China Development Financial. Mirae is the private-equity arm of Asian financial services group Mirae Asset Financial Group. Both are based in Hong Kong. At the time, the investors said Coffee Bean had a huge growth opportunity across Asia, where the brand is already well established.
“We’ve worked very hard over nearly 20 years to grow and nurture this great brand,” Sassoon said in a statement. “It’s been highly rewarding, and I value the relationships I’ve developed with our franchisees, developers and team members during my tenure as CEO of Asia Pacific. I look forward to my continued involvement as a board member and have full confidence in Andrew as he takes on the leadership role in Asia Pacific.”
Contact Lisa Jennings at [email protected].
Follow her on Twitter: @livetodineout