Kat Cole
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Katrina "Kat" Cole (born March 18, 1978) is an American businesswoman. She is the CEO of AG1, formerly known as Athletic Greens. She was previously the chief operating officer and president of North America for
Focus Brands GoTo Foods (formerly Focus Brands) is an American company that currently owns the Schlotzsky's, Carvel, Cinnabon, Moe's Southwest Grill, McAlister's Deli, Auntie Anne's and Jamba brands. It is located in Sandy Springs, Georgia, and operates ...
and the president of Focus Brands' subsidiary
Cinnabon Cinnabon, Inc., is an American chain of baked goods stores and kiosks, normally found in areas with high pedestrian traffic such as malls, airports and rest stops. The company's signature item is the cinnamon roll. As of December 2017, there w ...
, an American chain of retail bakeries specializing in
cinnamon buns A cinnamon roll (also known as cinnamon bun, cinnamon swirl, cinnamon scroll, cinnamon Danish and cinnamon snail) is a sweet roll commonly served in Northern Europe (mainly in Nordic countries, but also in Austria, Estonia, The Netherlands and ...
. Earlier in her career, she was the executive vice president of
Hooters Hooters is the registered trademark used by two American restaurant chains: Hooters, Inc., based in Clearwater, Florida, and Hooters of America, Inc. based in Atlanta, Georgia, and owned by the private investment firm Nord Bay Capital (with Tr ...
.


Early life

Cole was born the eldest of three sisters in
Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...
, and raised in
Orange Park, Florida Orange Park is a town in Clay County, Florida, United States. As a suburb of Jacksonville in neighboring Duval County, it is formally a part of the Jacksonville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 9,089 at the 2020 cen ...
. Her mother divorced her father (a
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
veteran) when Cole was nine years old, and raised the three girls as a single mother.


Education

Cole received her
MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular a ...
in 2010 from
Georgia State University Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a Public university, public research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is al ...
. She had dropped out of her undergraduate engineering program at the
University of North Florida The University of North Florida (UNF) is a public university, public research university in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. It is part of the State University System of Florida and is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern ...
to focus on her global career at Hooters, so she had to take the
GMAT The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT ( ())) is a computer adaptive test (CAT) intended to assess certain analytical, quantitative, verbal, and data literacy skills for use in admission to a graduate management program, such as a Mast ...
and extra interviews to apply. She was only allowed to attend the Georgia State MBA program since they are one of the few schools that allow experienced students who did not receive a bachelor's degree to apply. She also asked ten CEOs, including
Ted Turner Robert Edward Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and Philanthropy, philanthropist. He founded the CNN, Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour United States cable news, ...
, for letters of recommendation to the business school program.


Early career

Following her mother's divorce, Cole began working to help pay some of the family expenses. Cole worked at
The Body Shop The Body Shop International Limited, trading as the Body Shop, is a British cosmetics, skin care, and perfume company founded in 1976 by Anita Roddick, who opened her first store in Brighton, England. The company is now based in London Bridge ...
before starting her career at
Hooters Hooters is the registered trademark used by two American restaurant chains: Hooters, Inc., based in Clearwater, Florida, and Hooters of America, Inc. based in Atlanta, Georgia, and owned by the private investment firm Nord Bay Capital (with Tr ...
as a hostess. During her first year waitressing at
Hooters Hooters is the registered trademark used by two American restaurant chains: Hooters, Inc., based in Clearwater, Florida, and Hooters of America, Inc. based in Atlanta, Georgia, and owned by the private investment firm Nord Bay Capital (with Tr ...
, Cole covered varied positions from manager to cook, nearly every position at the restaurant. Upon her manager's recommendation as the
Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...
franchise's best employee, Cole was sent to
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
to train and motivate the new owners and employees at the opening of the first Hooters in Australia. She continued to travel overseas to train employees in Hooters Restaurants abroad. She became a vice president at age 26. As the vice president of training and development, Cole oversaw the growth of Hooters, from approximately 100 locations and $300 million in revenue to 500 locations in 33 countries and $1 billion in revenue.


Tenure at Cinnabon

In November 2010, Cole was hired by
Cinnabon Cinnabon, Inc., is an American chain of baked goods stores and kiosks, normally found in areas with high pedestrian traffic such as malls, airports and rest stops. The company's signature item is the cinnamon roll. As of December 2017, there w ...
Inc., and was named president in January 2011. During the first three years of her tenure, Cinnabon added 200 bakeries, created partnerships with grocery stores and restaurants like
Taco Bell Taco Bell Corp. is an American multinational chain of fast food restaurants founded in 1962 by Glen Bell (1923–2010) in Downey, California. Taco Bell is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. The restaurants serve a variety of Mexican-inspired ...
and
Burger King Burger King Corporation (BK, stylized in all caps) is an American multinational chain store, chain of hamburger fast food restaurants. Headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the company was founded in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacks ...
, and became a global brand in 56 countries. Cinnabon's 2013 sales were estimated to be $1 billion. Cole worked anonymously in several of Cinnabon's retail and production roles during her appearance on the American television show
Undercover Boss ''Undercover Boss'' is a reality television series franchise created by Stephen Lambert and produced in many countries. It originated in 2009 on the British Channel 4. The show’s format features the experiences of senior executives working u ...
, including at both traditional Cinnabon locations as well as a Cinnabon kiosk inside a Flying J truck stop in Virginia. At the time the show aired in 2012, she was 34 years old and the youngest CEO to appear on Undercover Boss. Among a number of other awards and accolades, Cole was also recognized by
Fortune Magazine ''Fortune'' (stylized in all caps) is an American global business magazine headquartered in New York City. It is published by Fortune Media Group Holdings, a global business media company. The publication was founded by Henry Luce in 1929. T ...
in 2013 for its
40 under 40 ''Fortune'' magazine's 40 Under 40 is a list of individuals the publication considers to be the most influential young leaders for the year. The list has existed in two phases: From 1999 to 2003, the list was presented purely as a numeric rankin ...
list. In the winter of 2015, Cole moved to become group president of
Focus Brands GoTo Foods (formerly Focus Brands) is an American company that currently owns the Schlotzsky's, Carvel, Cinnabon, Moe's Southwest Grill, McAlister's Deli, Auntie Anne's and Jamba brands. It is located in Sandy Springs, Georgia, and operates ...
, the company that owns
Cinnabon Cinnabon, Inc., is an American chain of baked goods stores and kiosks, normally found in areas with high pedestrian traffic such as malls, airports and rest stops. The company's signature item is the cinnamon roll. As of December 2017, there w ...
as well as Moe's and
Auntie Anne's Auntie Anne's is an American franchised chain of pretzel shops founded by Anne F. Beiler and her husband, Jonas, in 1988. Auntie Anne's serves products such as pretzels, dips, and beverages. They also offer Pretzels & More Homemade Baking Mix ...
.


Tenure at AG1

In 2021, Cole was named President and COO of AG1, formerly known as Athletic Greens. Cole was recruited by the company's founder after he heard her speak on
Anthony Pompliano Anthony, also spelled Antony, is a masculine given name derived from the ''Antonii'', a ''gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants ...
's "The Pomp Podcast." In July 2024, she was promoted to CEO of AG1.


Non-profit and humanitarian work

Cole has worked in Africa for sustainable development of women and children in need. She has also volunteered and advocated for many food service related organizations.


Awards and memberships

* Member of the board of directors for the Women's Foodservice Forum * Motivator of the year award by Elliot Leadership Institute (2008) * Serves as the chair of the Certification Governing Board for the National Restaurant Association Education Foundation (NRAEF) * Awarded Georgia Restaurant Association Crystal of Excellence (GRACE) Award (2010) * Serves as past chair for Georgia Restaurant Association (GRA) on the executive committee * Women's Foodservice Forum volunteer of the year award (2007) * She has been a chair for many committees and projects of organizations dealing with food service and hospitality * Ranked No. 40 in Fortune's 40 under 40 top young business stars (2013)


Personal life

In 2015, Cole became engaged to Daley Ervin. The couple married in 2016 at
Burning Man Burning Man is a week-long large-scale desert event focused on "community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance" held annually in the Western United States. The event's name comes from its ceremony on the penultimate night of the event: the ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cole, Kat 1978 births Living people 21st-century American businesspeople American chief executives of food industry companies American women chief executives Businesspeople from Atlanta Georgia State University alumni American chief operating officers Businesspeople from Jacksonville, Florida People from Orange Park, Florida Hooters people American retail chief executives 21st-century American businesswomen