Wednesday, October 1, 2025
spot_img

The man who built the ‘modern-day’ PepsiCo has died

spot_img
- Advertisement -

Donald Kendall, the former PepsiCo CEO who turned the company into a global consumer products powerhouse, has died. He was 99.

The company confirmed his death on a memorial page, which pays tribute to his contribution as the CEO of PepsiCo (PEP) for 23 years.” Under Kendall’s direction, PepsiCo became one of the world’s largest consumer products companies and elevated some of the world’s best-selling food and beverage brands to iconic status,” the company said.

“During his tenure as CEO, revenues increased almost 40-fold, from $200 million to $7.6 billion.”Kendall reportedly said that Coca-Cola (KO) “brought out the best” in PepsiCo, referring to the “cola wars,” which he said benefited both companies.

His first job at Pepsi was working on a bottling line, followed by a stint on a delivery truck. Kendall quickly proved himself, selling fountain syrup to restaurants before rising through the ranks to become the company’s top sales and marketing executive. He was named president of Pepsi-Cola International in 1957 and by the time he left that role six years later, Pepsi was sold in 103 countries.

Kendall was appointed CEO in 1963 and less than two years later he sealed a deal to merge Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, creating the “modern-day” PepsiCo, on the basis that “people eating chips are enjoying a beverage at the same time,” according to the memorial page. He retired in 1986, but was “a trusted advisor and advocate for PepsiCo leaders, serving the company a total of 39 years during his extraordinary life,” the company said.

Kendall’s family confirmed in a news release that he died at home Saturday of natural causes.

“All of us at PepsiCo are devastated by the passing of Don Kendall,” said PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Ramon L. Laguarta in a statement. “Don was the architect of the PepsiCo family. He was relentless about growing our business, a fearless leader, and the ultimate salesman.”

spot_img

Editorial

Why TCS Deferred FY25 Salary Hike: Better Hike Ahead?

TCS had initially announced its annual salary hike during...

Deloitte, PWC, EY, KPMG to Hire 1 Lakh People in India in FY25

According to estimates from top company officials and industry...

Higher EPS Pension Application Stuck: A Step-by-Step Guide to Fix

Nearly 97,640 Provident Fund (PF) members and pensioners under...

Employee Benefits at India’s Big 4 Firms Deloitte, PwC , EY, KPMG

The Big 4 firms; Deloitte, PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers), EY (Ernst...

TCS Announces 4-8% Salary Hike for FY25, Lowest in Last 4 Years

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India's largest IT services provider,...

Must Read

Pension Paperwork Made Easy; Central Govt’s Latest Move

The Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare has recently...

Tech Mahindra rewards ESOP to employees worth over Rs 7 lakh

A leading provider of digital transformation, consulting, and business...

Seema Bangia quits Mahindra Group as VP & Chief People Officer

Seema Bangia has resigned from Mahindra Group as Vice...

Zerodha Nikhil Kamath is worried about Friendship Recession

India's biggest stock broker company, Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath...

Apple asks staff to return to office 03 days a week, effective Sept 2021

Employees also have the chance to work remotely for...

Nasscom appoints TCS veteran Krishnan Ramanujam as Chairperson

IT industry body Nasscom has appointed Krishnan Ramanujam, a senior executive at...

KPMG US Responds to Trump Policies by Removing DEI Initiatives

KPMG US has announced the removal of its Diversity,...

Paneesh Rao bids farewell with a sense of gratitude to LTIMindtree

After an illustrious 36-year career in HR, Dr. Paneesh...

Related Articles

SightsIn Plus
SightsIn Plushttps://sightsinplus.com/
SightsIn Plus is an India’s leading high-quality people-focused monthly HR Magazine and provides up-to-date HR News, Leadership Announcements, Best HR Practices and Insights by Global CHROs, CEOs, HR Advisors, Business Managers and HR Heads on topics of interest to HR professionals. To subscribe SightsIn Plus, HR Magazine please visit- https://sightsinplus.com/subscribe/