NACCO Industries Inc. announced November 11 that Dr. Michael J. Morecroft, president and chief executive officer of NACCO's wholly owned subsidiary, Hamilton Beach Brands Inc., will retire on December 31, 2009.
Morecroft, 67, has been president and CEO of Hamilton Beach Brands since 2001. He joined what was then Hamilton Beach, which was owned by Glen Dimplex, in 1987 and remained with the company when it was acquired by NACCO Industries Inc. Morecroft led Hamilton Beach's product development and engineering activities until 2001 when he became president and CEO.
As part of the company's succession plan, Morecroft will serve on the boards of directors of Hamilton Beach Brands Inc. and The Kitchen Collection Inc. as vice chairman. In these roles, Morecroft will continue to be active in both companies by supporting their leadership transitions and focusing on strategic issues.
Upon Morecroft's retirement, Gregory H. Trepp, 47, currently vice president for global operations for Hamilton Beach Brands Inc. and interim president and CEO of NACCO's wholly owned subsidiary, The Kitchen Collection Inc., will become president and CEO of Hamilton Beach Brands and will become a member of Hamilton Beach Brand's board of directors. Trepp will also continue as the CEO of The Kitchen Collection Inc. and as a member of Kitchen Collection's board. Trepp joined Hamilton Beach Brands in January 1996 as director of marketing. Since that time, he has held positions of increasing responsibility within Hamilton Beach Brands and Kitchen Collection and brings extensive experience and knowledge of the company and the industry to his new positions.
Effective January 1, 2010, Robert LeBrun will become the president of The Kitchen Collection Inc. In addition, Alfred M. Rankin Jr., chairman, president and CEO of NACCO Industries Inc., will assume the position of chairman of both the Hamilton Beach Brands and Kitchen Collection boards.
Also effective January 1, 2010, Gregory E. Salyers, currently VP for global operations for Hamilton Beach Brands, will be appointed senior vice president for global operations, and Scott Tidey, currently VP for North America sales and marketing for Hamilton Beach Brands, will be appointed senior VP for North America sales and marketing.
Hamilton Beach Brands Inc., headquartered in Richmond, Va., is a leading designer, marketer and distributor of small electric household appliances, as well as commercial products for restaurants, bars and hotels.
The Kitchen Collection Inc., headquartered in Chillicothe, Ohio, is a national specialty retailer of kitchenware and gourmet foods operating under the Kitchen Collection and Le Gourmet Chef store names in outlet and traditional malls throughout the United States.
NACCO Industries Inc. is an operating holding company with subsidiaries in the following principal industries: lift trucks, small appliances, specialty retail and mining. NACCO Materials Handling Group Inc. designs, engineers, manufactures, sells, services and leases a comprehensive line of lift trucks and aftermarket parts marketed globally under the Hyster and Yale brand names. The North American Coal Corporation mines and markets lignite coal primarily as fuel for power generation and provides selected value-added mining services for other natural resources companies.