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Longtime Baldor Specialty Foods president set to retire
Michael Muzyk’s tenure will end later this year
1 Min Read
Longtime Baldor Specialty Foods President Michael Muzyk will retire at the end of 2023.
Following an almost three-decades-long career at the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic food distributor, Muzyk will step down. Muzyk first joined the company in 1996 as a sales representative when the company was still operating out of a 25,000-square-foot space in Maspeth, Queens.
Baldor Founder and CEO Kevin Murphy worked closely with Muzyk as he eventually took on the role of vice president, and then president. In 2013, Muzyk took on the task of helping the company move forward, following Kevin Murphy’s death. He ultimately helped Murphy’s son TJ Murphy to assume the CEO and owner position, which he continues to hold today.
Highlights of Muzyk’s career, according to Baldor, include:
Established Baldor’s 290,000-square-foot HQ in the Hunts Point section of the Bronx
Expanded service from Maine to Virginia
Opened regional distribution centers in Boston, the suburbs of Washington, D.C., and in Philadelphia
Expanded the product catalog beyond produce to include specialty dairy and meat
Led the acquisition of Pierless Fish
Spearheaded the development of Fresh Cuts, Baldor's processed fruit and vegetable operation, which has now grown to employ over 300 workers
Kept Baldor trucks running during recovery aid (9/11, Hurricaine Sandy, COVID-19)
Moving forward, TJ Murphy and Muzyk have been collaborating for more than a year to plan for succession, deciding not to appoint another president immediately.
However, in order to bolster the leadership team, Baldor has added eight executives to the VP/SVP level in the past 18 months and will continue to hire key roles to the C-suite in the coming months.
