News

Papa John's names former Taco Bell EVP to chief development role

Papa John's new Chief Development Officer Amanda Clark (photo: Business Wire)

February 17, 2020

Papa John's International, Inc. has named former Taco Bell executive vice president of restaurant experience Amanda Clark as its chief development officer to lead the company's expansion strategy globally, a news release said. 

Clark will oversee franchise development and sales, building design and new concepts, and the programs and personnel that provide ongoing facilities support to existing restaurants. At Taco Bell, she oversaw the brand's entire customer experience for 7,000 restaurants, including design, consumer-facing technology, merchandising, customer marketing, new concepts and company development. 

Prior to joining Taco Bell, she worked at Procter and Gamble for nearly 12 years with P&G brands, such as Olay, Pampers and Oral-B.

"Amanda is a passionate leader with a proven track record of driving growth at one of the restaurant industry's biggest success stories over the past 10 years," said Papa John's President and CEO Rob Lynch in the release. "I had the pleasure of working with Amanda during my time at both Procter & Gamble and Taco Bell, and I'm thrilled to welcome her to Papa John's. Her energy, ideas and expertise will help us to achieve our goal of driving continued net unit growth through expansion in both the U.S. and around the world."

Clark said she is a growth-oriented restaurant executive and believe strongly in the re-emergence of Papa John's in the pizza sector. 

"I believe Papa John's is on a path to be one of the great brand turnaround stories, and I'm excited to a be a part of it," Clark said in the release, just as the brand's stock peaked last week to a near 52-week high. "I'm passionate about helping companies grow. Continuing to open more units is one of the key metrics that define the health of a restaurant brand. I'm looking forward to working with Rob and the leaders of Papa John's to write the next chapter in the company's history."

Papa John's International, Inc. is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.