Rafael Pamias will succeed Servitje, who is taking on the role of executive chairman. A former Groupe Danone executive, Pamias has been with Bimbo since 2017, most recently as chief operating officer and chief sustainability officer. He steps into the CEO position from May 1.
The birth of the world’s biggest bakery manufacturer
Grupo Bimbo was founded by Don Lorenzo Servitje Sendra soon after World War II in 1945, with 34 employees and 10 trucks that delivered four products – cellophane wrapped sliced white bread in two sizes, rye bread and toasted bread – to the Mexican market. By the mid-1990s, Bimbo was selling more tortillas in the US than in Mexico. Today, the Mexican Stock Exchange-listed company has grown into the largest baking company in the world, with more than 100 brands, 227 bakeries across the globe and 151,000+ employees.
Don Lorenzo was Bimbo president until 1981 and board chairman until 1994. He died on February 3, 2017, at the age of 98.
His son, Daniel Servitje, was born in Mexico City in 1959 and first become involved in the family business at the age of 16 in 1982. He has been CEO since 1997 and chairman since 2013. Today, he is estimated to have a personal wealth of $7.7bn.
Servitje is passionate about the environment and actively promotes the importance for firms to foster purpose rooted in environmental sustainability and social responsibility. Under his watch, Bimbo has earned praise several times for its corporate governance. In 2018, he was avowed as one of Fortune’s 50 greatest leaders of the world, among numerous other accolades.
In his new role of executive chair role, he will focus on strategic decision making, ensuring the alignment of the company’s long-term strategy, as well as meeting the interests of the shareholders and board of directors.
“Having just turned 65 years old and after 43 years of working full-time, I want to take a step forward and have made the decision to pass the CEO baton and become executive chair,” said Servitje.
“On top of being the chairman of the board, I will continue highly involved in all aspects of the strategy and execution of the company. I will focus on the growth strategy, competitiveness and long-term view of Grupo Bimbo, while promoting the culture and focusing on talent development of generations to come. We will continue to double down on quality, innovation and research and development.”
He added, “Serving our associates, customers, consumers, board members, shareholders and investors of this special company has been the privilege of my life. It has been thanks to all of you that we are eight times larger than we were in 1997 when I took over as CEO, having carried out 93 acquisitions in this period. We are the largest baking company in the world, with 227 bakeries, more than 151,000 associates in the 35 countries where we operate. Together, we have achieved an unimaginable growth while delivering solid results in each of our key metrics.”
The new company lead
As CEO, Pamias will oversee the company’s growth and expansion. He brings to the table more than 35 years of experience in business strategy and marketing in multinational companies.
He was appointed Bimbo’s COO and chief sustainability officer in March 2023, having previously served as senior and executive VP, head of the company’s Latin America region and responsible for R&D and marketing. Before joining Bimbo, Pamias spent more than 11 years with Groupe Danone, most recently as a regional GM, Dairy.
“Rafa is an excellent operator and a strategist with a global vision, since he joined, I have been impressed by his commitment and intelligence,” said Servitje.
“His personal and professional trajectory has given him the experience of leading large organizations. He clearly sees our strengths, but also our opportunities, and what we must carry out to be a better company for the world. He has managed to achieve good financial results in his teams, while also becoming a sustainable company that leaves a mark, as we aspire in our purpose. He has been the architect of our new sustainability strategy.”
Pamias holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in business administration and management from ESADE in Barcelona and a master’s degree in international management from the Thunderbird School of Global Management in Arizona.
“I’m honored to have been assigned this great responsibility,” said Pamias.
“I deeply thank the trust placed in me by the board, shareholders and, of course, by Daniel. You can be sure that I am deeply committed and that I will work to continue with the success and sustainable growth that Grupo Bimbo has achieved for nearly 80 years.”