Forty years after starting Bob’s Red Mill, 89-year-old founder Bob Moore is stepping down from his role as CEO.
Moore has been the face of the company since 1978, when he and his wife discovered an old mill in Milwaukie and began producing natural grains. The company was among the first to offer gluten-free flour.
Although a fire destroyed the original mill in 1988, Moore (then 60 years old) rebuilt it and watched the business grow.
In 1999, Dennis Vaughn, who will be the company’s new CEO, joined Bob’s Red Mill. Over the next decade, he was credited with increased production and a number of product innovations and ideas.
Today, the grains and flours from Bob’s Red Mill are on the shelves of most US supermarkets and are also available in Japan and the Middle East. The company employs over 500 people and has an annual sales turnover of $50 million.
Bob’s face, with his wire glasses and white cap, still smiles from the product packaging. When customers call the company, it is his voice that initially greets them. Despite the role change, neither of these things is due to change in the immediate future.
Although Moore himself is passing on the title of CEO to Vaughn, he will remain the President of Bob’s Red Mill.