Consumer Goods CEO, COO & General Manager Search
Chief executives, presidents, COOs and general managers for consumer brands and retailers, whether you are planning a succession, scaling up or turning a business around.
A chief executive or chief operating officer appointment is one of the few hiring decisions that can reshape a consumer goods business within a single fiscal year. A strong appointment brings direction, pace, and credibility with customers, boards, and investors. A weak one surfaces as stalled product launches, a drifting supply chain, and a leadership team that gradually loses confidence. SundryHall runs CEO, COO, and general manager search assignments exclusively within the consumer goods and retail sector, where we understand the commercial pressures these leaders actually face. These include seasonality, retail relationships, margin discipline, and the operational cadence of consumer brands.
What our consumer goods CEO search service covers
A consumer goods CEO search is a structured, research-led process for identifying and appointing the most senior leader in a business. Unlike advertised recruitment, which draws only from people actively looking, it is built on direct approach. We map the market, identify leaders performing well in comparable roles, and engage them discreetly on your behalf. Most strong candidates at this level are passive, and they will only move for the right opportunity presented in the right way. That is why the quality of the initial approach counts for so much.
We work with founders, boards, investors, and HR and talent acquisition leaders at consumer-facing businesses across the United States, from venture-backed challenger brands through to established manufacturers and retail groups. Whether the requirement is a chief executive, a COO, or a divisional general manager, the method stays the same: research first, discretion throughout, and a shortlist you can act on with confidence.
When organizations come to us
These searches usually start at moments of real consequence. A founder is stepping back and the business needs its first professional CEO. A private equity firm has acquired a food and beverage or personal care brand and needs operational leadership that can deliver the value creation plan on schedule. A manufacturer is committing to digital transformation across its supply chain and needs a COO who has actually led that kind of change, not simply managed around it.
Other assignments begin with a problem instead of a plan. Growth has outpaced the leadership capability in place. A succession has arrived earlier than expected. A confidential replacement must be handled without unsettling the team, key retail accounts, or the trade. In each case the underlying need is the same: you need the right leader, identified through a rigorous process and appointed with discretion.
What these situations share is that the cost of a wrong appointment is far higher than the cost of a thorough search. A senior hire who does not fit the culture, the ownership structure, or the stage of the business can set a plan back by a year or more. That is why we treat every engagement as a decision about the direction of the organization rather than a vacancy to be filled.
Roles and profiles we recruit
Our work spans the senior leadership roles that shape consumer-facing businesses. We recruit chief executives, chief operating officers, and general managers, together with the commercial and operational leadership that sits immediately around them. A COO search typically demands depth in supply chain, manufacturing, procurement, or multi-site retail operations. A CEO appointment usually weighs strategic judgment, commercial instinct, and the ability to carry an organization, its board, and its investors through the next stage of growth.
Because we work only in this sector, we can calibrate what strong looks like in each sub-sector rather than relying on a generic leadership profile. A general manager built for grocery retail brings different instincts from one shaped by ecommerce and D2C economics. A COO from household durables approaches operational efficiency differently from one trained in food and beverage, where shelf life, traceability, and promotional volatility dominate. That calibration shows up directly in the shortlists we present.
Our executive search process
Every engagement follows a structured executive search process built for the consumer goods and retail sector. It is designed to give boards, investors, and leadership teams a clear view of the market, a rigorous assessment of every candidate, and confidence that the person appointed will succeed in the role.
Define the mandate
We begin by meeting your board, investors, and key stakeholders to agree the leadership requirements, success measures, and cultural context of the role before any outreach begins. This includes the commercial challenges the appointment must address, the reporting lines and remit of the position, and the compensation framework. The output is a written mandate that every party signs off, so the search is measured against agreed criteria rather than shifting expectations.
Map the market
Our consultants build a full picture of the talent landscape, using talent mapping and competitor organization analysis to identify every credible potential candidate. We look across adjacent categories, channels, and geographies as well as direct competitors, so the longlist reflects the whole market rather than the people who happen to be visible or actively looking. You see the map we build, including who was considered and why, which gives you useful intelligence on the sector even beyond the hire itself.
Approach and assess
We engage candidates directly and discreetly, protecting both your confidentiality and theirs. Each person is then assessed against the mandate through structured, in-depth interviews covering career history, leadership capability, and motivations, with evidence sought for the specific outcomes the role demands. Where a client requires it, we incorporate psychometric assessment or technical panel input to add a further objective view.
Present a shortlist
You receive a focused shortlist of candidates who meet the brief, each with a detailed profile covering experience, assessment findings, and cultural fit, together with their motivations and any risks worth exploring in interviews. We support your interview process throughout, preparing both sides, gathering feedback after every stage, and keeping candidates engaged so momentum is not lost.
Close and support
We manage referencing, offer negotiation, and resignation support, acting as an honest broker between you and the candidate so that the final conversations are straightforward. After acceptance we stay in contact through the notice period and onboarding, checking in with both the appointee and the hiring manager to protect the appointment and help the new leader settle quickly.
Why companies choose SundryHall
Plenty of firms can present a convincing process slide. What makes the difference once a search is underway comes down to a handful of working strengths.
Sector-only focus
We recruit exclusively in consumer goods and retail. That means every conversation with a candidate or client is grounded in current, relevant market knowledge rather than a general view of executive hiring. We know how the operating models differ between grocery, CPG, apparel and multi-channel retail, and what that means for the kind of operations leader a business actually needs.
Access to passive candidates
Our searches reach senior leaders who are performing well in their current roles and are not actively looking, which is where the strongest CEO and COO candidates usually are. We keep in touch with leaders in the sector between searches, so an approach can be made quickly and credibly when a search opens.
Shortlist quality over volume
We present a small number of candidates who genuinely fit the mandate, rather than a long list designed to demonstrate activity. That saves your board time, keeps the process moving, and raises the quality of the final decision. Every name on a SundryHall shortlist comes with a clear rationale for why they belong there.
Discretion in sensitive searches
Confidential replacements and succession work are handled with tight control of information at every stage of the recruitment process. We agree in advance who knows what, how the role is described in early approaches, and when a client's name is disclosed, protecting both the incumbent and the business.
Market intelligence as standard
Salary benchmarking, competitor analysis and talent mapping are part of every leadership search. You get a clearer picture of what the market pays, where the strongest operators sit today, and how realistic your brief is: a firmer basis for every decision you make.
Assessing leadership and cultural fit
At this level, a résumé tells you very little about whether an appointment will work. Our assessment looks beyond experience into how a candidate leads: their leadership style, how they build and hold teams, and the quality of their judgment under commercial pressure. We probe how they have actually handled supply chain disruption, margin compression, and channel shifts, and how they dealt with the human resources challenges that come with scaling a consumer business. What we are looking for is evidence of behavior in real situations, not rehearsed answers.
Cultural fit counts for as much as capability, and it is a common reason senior appointments fail. A CEO who thrived inside a large corporate structure may struggle in a founder-led or private equity-backed environment, and the reverse is equally true. We test for that fit explicitly during assessment, examining decision-making pace, tolerance for ambiguity, and how a candidate works with boards and owners. The aim is a leader who can contribute from the first quarter, rather than spending a year adjusting to a context that was never properly examined.
Engagement terms
CEO, COO, and general manager assignments are typically run on a retained or exclusive basis, reflecting the research depth and market coverage these appointments require. Scope, timelines, and fees are agreed at the outset, so you know exactly what the search covers and what it will cost before any work begins.
Throughout the assignment you receive structured progress updates: who has been approached, how the market is responding, and where the shortlist is forming. That visibility means there are no surprises at the point of presenting candidates, and it gives you the chance to refine the brief while the search is still live.
Our focus is on permanent executive-level appointments. If a different route (an interim appointment, an internal promotion, or a restructured role) would serve your situation better, we will tell you plainly at the scoping stage instead of selling you a process you do not need. Interim chief executives and operators are placed through our fractional and interim leadership practice.
Frequently asked questions
How long does a CEO search take?
Most CEO executive search assignments run for several months from initial briefing to an accepted offer, with the exact timeline shaped by the complexity of the brief and how scarce the profile is in the market. A clearly defined, well-scoped mandate moves faster than one that evolves mid-search. We agree realistic milestones at the start (briefing, longlist, shortlist, final interviews, offer) and report against them throughout, so you always know exactly where the search stands and what is coming next.
How does a COO executive search differ from a CEO search?
The structure of the process is broadly similar, but the assessment emphasis shifts significantly. A COO executive search weighs operational depth, supply chain judgment, manufacturing and logistics fluency, and a demonstrable record of execution more heavily. A CEO search places greater weight on strategic vision, commercial judgment, board and investor relationships, and wider stakeholder leadership. Getting that weighting right at the briefing stage is what prevents a well-qualified shortlist of entirely the wrong profile: candidates who would succeed in a different seat, but not in this one.
Do you handle confidential and succession searches?
Yes. We handle confidential executive recruitment, including succession and replacement searches where the incumbent is still in the role. Candidate approach, client identity, and the timing of disclosure are all managed carefully, with information released only in stages and only to candidates who have reached the appropriate point in the process. You decide when to widen the circle.
Who do you work with?
We work with consumer goods manufacturers, food and beverage and beauty brands, retailers, and ecommerce businesses, from founder-led companies through to private equity portfolio businesses. The common thread is a leadership vacancy where the cost of a wrong hire is high and the market for the right hire is thin: the situations where a structured, researched search earns its keep.
Start your search with SundryHall
If you are planning a CEO, COO, or general manager appointment, the most useful first step is a confidential conversation about the role, the market, and the realistic options. In that first call we will talk through the mandate, the leadership gap you are trying to close, the compensation range the market is likely to require, and the kind of candidate profile that fits the stage your business is in. Call us at +1 888-202-9809 or email [email protected], and we will connect you with a consultant who knows your corner of the consumer goods and retail sector.
Early conversations are discreet and carry no obligation. Some leaders are still deciding whether a search is the right answer at all: whether to promote from within, restructure the role, or go to market. We are happy to be a sounding board at that stage, and to share what we are seeing in terms of candidate availability, hiring timelines, and the moves competitors are making.
SundryHall has offices in Atlanta, Georgia; Marlborough, Massachusetts; Parsippany, New Jersey; and Cheyenne, Wyoming, and runs executive search assignments for consumer and retail businesses across the United States, in consumer packaged goods, food and beverage, apparel, beauty, direct-to-consumer brands, specialty retail, grocery, and ecommerce.
When you reach out, it helps to have a few things on hand: the title and reporting line for the role, the reason it is open, the timeline you are working to, and anything you already know about the profile you want. If you do not have all of that yet, that is fine; shaping it is part of the work. Either way, we will get back to you promptly with a clear view of what the search would involve, how long it is likely to take, and what success would look like.
Brief us on the role you need to fill
Tell us about the position, the location and the timeline. A consultant who works your sector will follow up to talk through how we would run the search.