Guzman y Gomez’s new burrito boss tasked to hire CFO, prepare ASX debut

Guzman y Gomez has appointed one of its long-time board directors and former top executive at ASX-listed retail distributor Accent Group to co-CEO of the burrito chain as it awaits friendlier market conditions to make its debut on the Australian stock exchange.

Hilton Brett will share the job of co-chief executive with founder Steven Marks after a five-year stint as a board director at the burrito chain. Most recently, he was operating partner at TDM Growth, the private investment firm that is Guzman y Gomez’s biggest shareholder.

Co-chief executive officers of Guzman Y Gomez, Hilton Brett (left) and founder Steven Marks (right).Credit: Brent Lewin

Brett was appointed to the role after working closely with Marks as acting chief financial officer following the departure of the last person in the role, Rebecca Lowde, who left in June after 11 months in the job.

“One of the most important things we need to do is recruit a chief financial officer,” Brett said.

Before joining TDM Growth Partners in 2018, Brett spent 11.5 years as co-CEO of Accent Group, the $1 billion ASX company that distributes clothing for streetwear and sneaker brands such as Glue Store, Hype, Platypus, Dr Martens, Athlete’s Foot, Vans and more.

Brett will take on the finance, IT, HR, legal, real estate and investor relation functions in the business, leaving Marks to focus on food, marketing, operations, and its US expansion.

The Mexican fast food chain, which sold $759 million worth of burritos, tacos, and bowls in the 2023 financial year, has “all the governance in place that any public company would have”, said Brett, who is watching for signs that global markets will improve before launching an initial public offering on the ASX.

“We’ll be ready, we would expect, in the next 18 months or so,” Brett said, adding there was no “firm date” but was looking at “potentially late 2024 [or] 2025”.

“It’s determined by market conditions as well. It’s really about more stability and making sure the IPO window is open than anything else.”

The number of initial public offerings in Australia has declined to a trickle since the record-breaking figure of 191 floats in 2021 amid higher interest rates and greater volatility in sharemarkets that have dampened investor appetite. There have been 23 IPOs in Australia so far this year, with just 13 more in the pipeline, according to ASX’s upcoming floats and listings page.

Brett echoed Marks’ former sentiments of Guzman y Gomez as a “resilient business that operates well in any kind of environment”, but said he was looking for more “general stability in the market”, a better environment for IPOs and more consumer confidence.

“There is a bit of lack of confidence: there isn’t a clear direction as far as what’s happening with interest rates and cost of living pressure.”

Marks, who has been hunting for someone to help lead the business since May when he experienced a health scare, said few people had Brett’s retail experience, and he realised Brett was right for the role due to his familiarity with the company’s operations and company culture.

“GYG’s becoming a very large, often complex business,” Marks said. “Working together over last four months, I’ve realised he knows GYG inside and out.

“He has such deep belief in the vision, so it was just the right move.”

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