INTERVIEW

The Hershey Company is a global confectionery leader known for its chocolate, sweets and other snacks. Holding more than 80 brands globally that drive more than $7.5 billion in annual revenue, Hershey is focused on continuing to build its competitive advantage in North America while growing its presence in key international markets. Steven Schiller, President, International, oversees the markets in China, Asia, Canada, Latin America, India, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Schiller explains that Hershey’s corporate strategy is based on a virtuous cycle of growth, margin expansion, and investment. "Our strategy is predicted on a virtuous cycle that starts with growth and seeks to expand our margins within that growth," Schiller states. Hershey’s overarching growth strategy includes four legs: “The first leg looks at how to drive growth in our core business,” he says. “The second seeks to drive innovation. The third focuses on ‘the box and beyond’...in other words, winning with ‘bricks and mortar’ retailers like supermarkets and convenience stores and moving into newer areas like eCommerce. The fourth aims to expand the Hershey portfolio into broader snacking.” He notes that last year, the company announced its “Margin for Growth” program, which aims to unlock margins that exist within the business to help enable greater investments to drive growth within each of the four legs.

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