Kitchen electrics developer and marketer Select Brands named company veteran Eric Endres president, succeeding his father, Bill Endres, who remains chairman of the company.
Select Brands develops and markets kitchen electrics under such brands as Toastmaster, TRU, Kitchen Selectives and Babycakes, as well as a wide range of licensed properties, including Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, DC and Nickelodeon.
Eric Endres joined Select Brands in 1998 when Bill Endres founded the business after 22 years with the Crock-Pot creator The Rival Company. Eric Endres rose at Select Brands from marketing and product management to vice president before taking the president reins on January 1, 2024.
Eric Endres spearheaded several major initiatives across many departments at Select Brands, including the expansion of its licensed product programs, a move to advanced ERP management software systems, conversion to a more adaptable and scalable 3PL-based distribution platform, and, more recently, a shift in e-commerce strategy from a 1P operation to a 3P marketplace accelerator.
“It is time for Eric to be recognized for all the work he does every day for our business and for others to know that the future of Select Brands is in good hands for years to come,” said Bill Endres, who remains active on the company’s leadership team.
Eric Endres credited a hands-on, family-oriented and team-based company culture as the foundation for the consistent growth of Select Brands over the past two-plus decades. He is joined on the company management team by his brother, Wes.
(Pictured above L-R: Select Brands’ Eric Endres, Bill Endres and Wes Endres at the 2023 Housewares Charity Foundation gala in Chicago. Company founder Bill Endres was honored with the HCF Lifetime Achievement Award during the gala.)
“I’m incredibly grateful to my father that I was able to learn alongside him,” Eric Endres said. “He has a tremendous legacy… a 50-year history in this business of recognizing retail changes, manufacturing changes and customer change to encourage and enable the business to evolve. He had the vision to push the company, but he was selfless in the respect he had to allow his team to learn and, yes, sometimes to fail.”
Looking ahead, Eric Endres said Select Brands remains closely tuned to the shifting channels of commerce.
“The way you serve the customer — expectations are much higher and accelerated,” he said. “This company has a strong legacy in product development, innovation, bringing new ideas to retailers. Now, we’re focused on delivering even more flexibility and innovation across every aspect of the business.”
