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Hershey Names Dan Vucovich Vice President, Chief Customer Officer - U.S. Commercial Group

Posted on: Tuesday, 14 February 2006, 09:00 CST

HERSHEY, Pa., Feb. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Hershey Company today announced that Dan Vucovich has been named Vice President, Chief Customer Officer - U.S. Commercial Group. Vucovich, who joins Hershey from Pepsi-Cola North America where he was Vice President, Business Development, will be responsible for leading Hershey's selling and customer service organization. He also will be responsible for developing breakthrough solutions that drive profitable growth for U.S. and global customers. He will report to Chris Baldwin, Senior Vice President, President U.S. Commercial Group.

"Dan is an outstanding leader with a strong track record of driving growth and market share gains across all major customer channels," Baldwin said. "He excels at customer marketing, as well as at developing sales strategies and partnering with customers. His broad experience across categories and business systems will be invaluable as we build on the momentum Hershey has achieved in the marketplace."

Commenting on his new position, Vucovich said, "I'm thrilled to be joining a sales team that has delivered such superior results. Together, we'll continue to build Hershey's selling capabilities and further capitalize on the company's growth opportunities in both core confectionery and the broader snack market."

In his role as Vice President, Business Development with Pepsi-Cola North America, Vucovich was responsible for the company's national customer teams, retail channel strategy and strategic sales plan. Prior to this, he was Vice President, Marketplace Initiative Development. Vucovich also held a variety of sales leadership positions at Frito-Lay, Inc., including serving as Vice President, General Manager - Club Channel, Vice President, North Central Region, Vice President Customer Delivery, and Area Vice President, Northern California.

Vucovich has a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. and a Master of Management degree from Northwestern's J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management.

Hershey formed its U.S. Commercial Group in 2005. The Group is responsible for continuing to build Hershey's confectionery leadership while leveraging its scale in the U.S. snack market.

About The Hershey Company

The Hershey Company is a leading snack food company and the largest North American manufacturer of quality chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery products. With revenues of over $4 billion and more than 13,000 employees worldwide, The Hershey Company markets such well-known brands as Hershey's, Reese's, Hershey's Kisses, Kit Kat, Almond Joy, Mounds, Jolly Rancher, Twizzlers, Ice Breakers, and Mauna Loa, as well as innovative new products such as Take 5 and Hershey's Cookies. In addition to its traditional confectionery products, Hershey offers a range of products specifically developed to address the nutritional interests of today's health-conscious consumer. These products include sugar-free Hershey's, Reese's and York candies, and PayDay Pro. It also markets Hershey's cocoa, Hershey's syrup and other branded baking ingredients, toppings and beverages. In addition, Artisan Confections Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Hershey Company, markets such premium chocolate offerings as Scharffen Berger, known for its high-cacao dark chocolate products, and Joseph Schmidt, recognized for its fine, handcrafted chocolate gifts. Visit us at http://www.hersheynewsroom.com/.

First Call Analyst: FCMN Contact: dkreider@hersheys.com

The Hershey Company

CONTACT: Stephanie L. Moritz of The Hershey Company, +1-717-534-7641

Web site: http://www.hersheys.com/http://www.hersheynewsroom.com/

Source: PRNewswire-FirstCall

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