Meet the Dynamic Team Behind the Donut Shop Business Success
Flynn Dekker
Chief Executive Officer
Shipley Do-Nuts CEO Flynn Dekker joined the company in 2023 to spearhead the iconic, Houston-born brand’s national expansion, bringing 30-plus years of executive leadership experience in the restaurant and retail industry and a strong track record of executing significant growth. Dekker previously served as CEO of Bonchon, a global franchisor of Korean chicken restaurants with
more than 420 locations spanning nine countries. He also held chief marketer roles at Wingstop Restaurants, where he led all strategic advertising, franchisee communication, branding, media and marketing efforts, and at Rave Restaurant Group and Fogo de Chao. In addition to expanding Shipley’s 87-year-old brand’s footprint and store count, Dekker will also focus on driving same store sales growth and investing in franchisee success with product innovation, equipment and technology upgrades and customer service enhancements.
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Donna Josephson
Chief Marketing Officer
Shipley Do-Nuts CMO Donna Josephson is a dynamic, results-oriented marketing professional with over 20 years of restaurant marketing experience. She brings creativity, drive and leadership to help the 87-year-old company enter a new era of growth and innovation. She led the launch of the company’s first-ever professional branding campaign and is tasked with
driving the company forward with brand marketing and strategy as well as off-premises strategy. Prior to joining Shipley in 2021, she served as CMO at Corner Bakery Cafe, Fazoli’s and McAlister’s Deli and has held leadership positions with other national brands such as Chick-Fil-A, Applebee’s and Wendy’s. In addition to creative problem-solving to increase company sales and profits, her passions include developing high-performance teams and creating cross functional partnerships to drive results and giving back to the industry and her community. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of CORE (Children of Restaurant Employees) charity.
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Brad Reynolds
Chief Financial Officer
Brad Reynolds joins us from Blaze Pizza where he most recently served as the Chief Financial Officer. He has served as Chief Operating Officer at Creating Culinary Communities, CFO and SVP of Development at Smashburger as well as an Investment Banking Senior Associate with Capstone Partners. Brad brings a wealth of knowledge from his experience in both the restaurant and banking segments.
Chris Smith
Senior VP of Operations & Training
Chris most recently served as COO of Eskimo Hut where he oversaw almost every aspect of the business. He has also served in many leadership roles as SVP of Operations at Rave Restaurant Group, RVP for Smashburger, as well as many years with Chipotle. Chris works closely with the Shipley Operations and Training teams to ensure our franchisees have the necessary tools and support to be successful.
Jim Fisher
Senior Vice President of Supply Chain
Jim was named senior vice president of supply chain in February 2022, bringing more than 20 years of food manufacturing and food service experience to the company. His previous roles include senior director of global strategic sourcing at Krispy Kreme and senior manager of sourcing at Pillsbury/General Mills.
Kerry Leo
Vice President of Technology
Kerry, who joined Shipley Do-Nuts in June of 2021 to head up the technological transformation of the brand, has more than two decades of technology and operational leadership experience. He was previously the Senior Director of IT at Church’s Texas Chicken®, Industry Manager for Food Service at Radiant Systems POS, and held top IT positions with Focus Brands and Chick-fil-A.
Keith Sizemore
Senior Vice President of Franchise Development
Keith will be responsible for leading all functions of development including construction, design, new shop openings, real estate and sales. Keith brings great experience as he was most recently the VP of Development for Marco’s Pizza, one of the fastest growing restaurant concepts over the last several years. He is also the owner of 6 Marco’s pizza franchise locations.
Prior to Marco’s, Keith worked in a variety of roles at McDonalds for 12 years.
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Ben Bass
Senior Director of Real Estate
Ben joined Shipley Do-Nuts in 2023 with a track record of helping companies identify and align business, financial, and operational objectives with real estate requirements. Those companies have included Sweetgreen, Planet Fitness, Cotton Patch Café, and Walmart. He leads our real estate team and supports our franchisees in their expansion efforts.
Jonathan Massey
Vice President of Sales
Jonathan is a seasoned franchise development leader, known for propelling growth. As the former Director of Franchise Development at Wingstop, he spearheaded the company’s record-breaking pipeline of development agreements. With over a decade of experience across development, operations, and marketing roles at Pizza Hut, Krispy Kreme, and Burger King, Jonathan consistently delivers impactful results.
Fred Frey
Director of Franchise Recruitment
Fred brings over a decade of experience in the financial sector, where he excelled as a Regional Private Banker and Financial Advisor. In 2021 he transitioned into franchising, leading an up and coming brand from 40 to 100 locations, while also more than doubling its development pipeline. He joined Shipley’s in January 2024 bringing a strategic vision, while leveraging his background to propel the brand forward.
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