True Recruits COO for Wonder

October 31, 2024 – Global talent provider True has assisted in the recruitment of Tony Hoggett as the new chief operating officer of Wonder. Todd Zangrillo, Joe Illsley, Hannah James, and Alan Cork led the assignment. “At Wonder, we are deeply committed to investing in exceptional talent as we strategically shape our company’s future,” said Marc Lore, founder and CEO. “Bringing Tony Hoggett on board as chief operating officer is key to our ongoing effort to recruit world-class leaders.”
Mr. Lore told Fortune that the hire isn’t an indication that Wonder is planning to get into the grocery business. Rather, the company valued Mr. Hoggett’s experience opening and running brick-and-mortar stores and his knowledge of fresh-food supply chains, two things that will be key for Wonder as it scales.
Previously, Mr. Hoggett served as the senior vice president of worldwide grocery stores at Amazon. He joined Amazon in 2022 and has been at the helm for the recent expansion of Amazon Fresh, which has more than doubled its brick-and-mortar footprint in 2024, increasing its U.S. store count from 20 in April to 52 as of October 15, according to Scrapehero.com. “After nearly three years of leading our grocery business, helping guide the organization to new levels of impact and building a strong team that will continue to make grocery shopping simpler, faster and more affordable, Tony Hoggett has decided to leave Amazon. We thank Tony for his many accomplishments at Amazon and especially for what he’s delivered for customers,” the retailer said.
Prior to his time at Amazon, Mr. Hoggett spent more than three years at U.K. grocery chain Tesco, where he served in a variety of roles, including chief operating officer and chief strategy and innovation officer.
Mr. Hoggett will have a wide range of responsibilities as COO. He will lead Wonder’s restaurant operations as well as its real estate development, supply chain and logistics. Mr. Hoggett will also oversee culinary engineering and technology.
Mr. Lore, an entrepreneur and ecommerce pioneer, founded Wonder in 2018. The chain’s stores offer the menus of dozens of restaurant brands under one roof for pickup, delivery or dine in. Wonder has attracted attention for its rapid growth, which has been fueled by $1.5 billion in private funding, and its vertically integrated business model.
Related: True Search Recruits CEO for Match Group
Working in both the private and public sectors, True Search has offices throughout the U.S. as well as the EMEA and APAC regions. Since the late 1990s, the firm’s founders have refined their search process with a blend of data-centric insights, relationship-building, and experience to produce a methodology that consistently improves hiring decisions and accelerates growth. The firm’s clients include Jet, Work Front, and Summit Partners. True Search is a subsidiary of True Platform, a global portfolio of human capital services and products for high-growth tech and tech-enabled organizations. True recently placed No. 6 on the Hunt Scanlon Media “Top 50 Recruiters” ranking.
Experienced Search Consultants
A tech growth-company builder for more than 20 years, Mr. Zangrillo co-leads the firm’s consumer practice. He conducts a range of CxO searches for True clients across a broad number of sectors. The consumer team’s breadth of knowledge and expertise within consumer internet, beauty, retail and fashion, food, travel and hospitality, and digital media and entertainment provides a strong multi-faceted approach. Prior to joining True, he served as the human resources business partner with eBay’s E-commerce technology organization.
True Search Recruits CEO for Funko
True has placed Cynthia Williams as the new CEO of NASDAQ-traded Funko, Inc. in Everett, WA. Todd Zangrillo, Ben O’Reilly, Gail Tifford, and Elizabeth Tyler led the assignment. Michael Lunsford is serving as the company’s interim CEO until Ms. Williams joins the company. “There’s a next level of innovation happening in collectibles category,” said Mr. Zangrillo. “Cynthia’s experience launching leading brands in pop culture, ecommerce, retail, and consumer products. align perfectly with Funko’s current and future business strategy.”
Mr. Illsley is a principal in the CEO and board practices at True, where he focuses on recruiting and assessing senior operations and supply chain talent for high-growth, technology-enabled companies. Prior to joining True, he spent two years with the executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles in their supply chain & operations officers practice, where he served Fortune 500, private-equity and venture backed clients in finding transformational board members and operating executives.
Mr. Cork leads the global food and beverage sector at True. He has more than 15 years of executive search experience across a range of F&B segments including CPG, restaurants, delivery and food/ag tech for venture, private equity, and public companies. Mr. Cork’s specialties include CEO / president, board, marketing and sales roles. He has over 17 years of industry experience in CPG food and marketing leadership roles, underpinning his search experience. These include leading consumer brands at P&G, Heinz, and General Mills, as well as marketing at American Express and OPUS.
Related: True Search Recruits CEO for Imperfect Foods
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media