USA – US-based freshly prepared meal delivery service Freshly has appointed Anna Fabrega –the current chief commercialization officer- as CEO, effective immediately.  

Fabrega is succeeding Freshly co-founder Mike Wystrach, who has headed the company since its inception in 2012.  

Wystrach’s abrupt replacement as leader of Freshly and transition to new role as advisor to the Freshly board of directors comes less than a year after the company was purchased by Nestlé. 

“It’s never an easy decision to move on from something you’ve built from the ground up, but I’m excited to take my passion for creating new innovations for consumers on to my next chapter, and I look forward to seeing Anna lead the Freshly business to new heights,” Wystrach said in a statement. 

In a post on Medium, Wystrach hinted that he is looking to start a new business, without offering details about his plans. 

“I am looking forward to incorporating all of the lessons I learned with Freshly into a brand new company (and a new industry). I am incredibly excited to see if we can build something even bigger. Stay tuned…,” Wystrach wrote. 

Fabrega, on the other hand, is ascending to the role of CEO after serving as Freshly’s chief commercialization officer where she oversaw marketing, brand, menu development, customer experience, and sales for the company.  

She joined Freshly shortly after Nestlé took over the company last October in a deal that valued it at US$950 million.  

Before joining Freshly in early 2021, Fabrega was in charge of the Amazon Go fleet of automated brick-and-mortar stores.

She also led the Amazon Kitchen private label fresh foods business and earlier held other positions for the e-commerce giant.    

In her new position as CEO, she will report to Steve Presley, chairman and CEO Nestlé U.S. division.  

She takes charge of the company at a time when it has expanded its operations rapidly, fueled by strong customer demand for its health-focused meals.  

Freshly reportedly delivers more than 1 million meals per week to customers in 48 states and recently took advantage of Nestlé’s expertise to introduce a line of plant-based meals in August following several years of planning. 

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