Massimo Zanetti Beverage USA Names Matthew Smith President

Matthew Smith. Massimo Zanetti Beverage USA press photo. 

Massimo Zanetti Beverage USA (MZB-USA) has named Matthew Smith president, elevating the former sales and marketing chief to a broader leadership role across its U.S. operations.

In the new role, Smith will work alongside CEO Scott Meader on long-term strategy, innovation and national growth efforts, according to the Suffolk, Virginia-based coffee company.

“Matthew has been a transformative force within our organization,” Meader said in an announcement of the appointment today.

Smith most recently served as MZB-USA’s senior vice president of sales and marketing. Before joining MZB-USA, Smith spent more than a decade at Voss Water and previously held leadership and commercial roles at RNDC, Frito-Lay and Nestlé Waters, according to the company.

MZB-USA, the North American operating unit of Italy-based Massimo Zanetti Beverage Group, maintains a large private-label roasting business while also operating U.S. consumer brands including Chock full o’Nuts, Hills Bros., MJB, Chase & Sanborn, Segafredo Zanetti and Kauai Coffee.

The company says its U.S. footprint includes roasting facilities in Suffolk and Moonachie, New Jersey, plus four distribution hubs.

Smith’s appointment comes at a high-pressure moment for Kauai Coffee, the largest coffee plantation in the U.S. that also operates a roastery and visitor center on the island. 

Kauai Coffee issued WARN notices affecting 141 workers in January, with potential layoffs starting March 14. Those layoffs are now scheduled to begin April 18, as MZB-USA and the landowner, a firm called Brue Baukol Capital Partners, extended negotiations. 

According to MZB-USA, Smith is being tasked with strengthening the company’s core brands while “scaling new platforms and driving deeper customer and consumer engagement.”

“I’m honored to step into the role of president at such an exciting time for Massimo Zanetti Beverage USA,” Smith said. “We have a strong foundation, iconic brands and tremendous opportunities ahead.”

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