HOUSTON, March 23, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY) North America's largest foodservice marketer and distributor, announced today that Brett Lindig has been named president and chief executive officer of Sysco Food Services of East Texas, LLC, a new "fold-out" facility that is currently under construction in Longview, Texas. Mr. Lindig served most recently as executive vice president, Sysco Food Services of San Antonio, LP. He will assume his new position effective July 1, 2007.
Mr. Lindig, 45, began his SYSCO career at Sysco Food Services of Austin, LP as a marketing associate in 1985. In 1990 he transferred to Sysco Food Services of Dallas, LP as a brand manager. One year later, he was promoted to director of marketing and in 1992 to district manager. In 1995 Mr. Lindig was appointed regional vice president and two years later he became vice president of territory sales. In 1998 he transferred to the San Antonio operation where he served as senior vice president of sales. Later that year, he was named executive vice president and in 2000 he transferred to the Dallas operation in the same capacity. Three years later, he moved back to San Antonio serving in his current position. Prior to joining SYSCO, Mr. Lindig was a sales representative for a food manufacturer.
Born in Austin and raised in Houston, he is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, where he received a BBA degree in 1985. Mr. Lindig will relocate to the Longview area in the near future.
"Fold-out facilities have been a great success for SYSCO and we continue to build them in areas where we see significant growth in foodservice," said Richard J. Schnieders, SYSCO's chairman, chief executive officer and president. "We believe that the growth we have seen in the Longview area will support a local facility, allowing us to offer our distribution services to the communities in that region."
The new SYSCO company in Longview is expected to be completed in the second quarter of calendar year 2008. It will serve restaurants, hospitals, schools, colleges, retirement homes, hotels and other foodservice operations in the following areas: East Texas, northwestern Louisiana, southern Arkansas, and southeastern Oklahoma. Foodservice customers in the area are currently being served by several surrounding SYSCO operating companies. The complex will include approximately 360,000 square feet of refrigerated, frozen and dry warehouse space, as well as administrative offices.
The contractor for the East Texas facility is Lee Lewis Construction, Inc. and the realtor is Brian Burke. Several people were instrumental in assisting with the site location, in particular Jay Dean, mayor of Longview; the Longview City Council; John Stroud and Richard Andrews from The Longview Economic Development Corporation; Judge Bill Soudt and county commissioners from Gregg County, Texas; Rick Perry, Governor of Texas; and Aaron Emerson, Executive Director, Economic Development and Tourism for the state of Texas. "We selected this site because of its favorable transportation infrastructure, the local government's cooperation and support, as well as the availability of qualified workforce and the city's prevailing lifestyle," said Michael Downs, SYSCO's assistant vice president, real estate and construction.
SYSCO is the global leader in selling, marketing and distributing food products to restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities, lodging establishments and other customers who prepare meals away from home. Its family of products also includes equipment and supplies for the foodservice and hospitality industries. For the calendar year 2006, the company generated $33.9 billion in sales. For more information about SYSCO visit www.sysco.com.
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Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made herein are forward-looking statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. They include statements regarding industry growth and employment growth. These statements involve risks and uncertainties and are based on current expectations and management's estimates; actual results may differ materially. Those risks and uncertainties that could impact these statements include the risks relating to the foodservice distribution industry's relatively low profit margins and sensitivity to economic conditions, SYSCO's leverage and debt risks, the risk of exposure to product liability claims, the risk of interruption of supplies due to lack of long-term contracts, work stoppages or otherwise, the inability to find future attractive 'fold-out' locations and construction timetables. For a discussion of additional factors that could cause actual results to differ from those described in the forward-looking statements, see the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended December 30, 2006 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.