International Foodservice Equipment Distributors (IFED), a buying group representing 15 dealers, announced that Keith Kidwell will assume the role of executive director beginning in January 2024.
Kidwell succeeds Mike McNeel, who will retire at the end of 2023 after 11 years of leading the buying group. Kidwell comes to IFED from Central Restaurant Products, where he has held several leadership roles over the past 28 years, including the position of president since 2018. Kidwell has served on the IFED board since 2012.
“This new role allows me to work with some of the finest dealers and manufacturers in our industry,” Kidwell said. He and McNeel will work together until the end of the year to ensure a smooth transition. “Mike is strategic, influential, logical, driven, successful and just flat-out smart. He has been my sounding board and mentor for many years. We have made a great team working together and he will be greatly missed.”
McNeel added, “IFED got lucky because sitting at the intersection of opportunity and preparation sat Keith Kidwell, a rare talent and true gentleman that helped co-create IFED’s past 10 years of success so, there’s no one better to lead the next 10 years.”