Regis Corporation Announces Leadership Transition

Regis Corporation (NYSE:RGS), a leader in the haircare industry, whose primary business is franchising, owning, and operating technology-enabled hair salons, today announced that Hugh Sawyer, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, will retire from active management and his current roles, effective October 5, 2020. Felipe Athayde, most recently President, Americas of Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, owned by Restaurant Brands International, will succeed Mr. Sawyer as CEO and President and will join the Company’s Board of Directors. The Board has elected Daniel Beltzman, current Regis Director, to the role of Chairman of the Board, also effective upon Mr. Sawyer’s retirement. Mr. Sawyer will remain with Regis as an executive advisor through September 2021 to support the transition.

Mr. Athayde brings nearly a decade of multi-brand and multi-unit experience, both domestically and internationally, a proven track record of franchise growth and success, and a deep understanding of the asset-light franchise model. Mr. Athayde has held positions of increasing responsibility at Restaurant Brands International, including senior management roles at Burger King, Tim Hortons and Popeyes, with expertise in strategy and brand development, finance, operations, marketing and sales.

Most recently, Mr. Athayde served as President, Americas of Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, where he led the successful revitalization of the brand resulting in some of the largest all-time quarterly comparable store sales increases in the industry, as well as the recovery of Popeyes following the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, he oversaw one of the biggest product launches in the industry - the Popeyes Chicken Sandwich - and has a track record of developing high performance teams and implementing business-wide technology upgrades.

“Over the last three and a half years, Hugh developed and executed a transformational strategy that has positioned Regis for its next chapter of growth and development,” said Virginia Gambale, Regis’ Lead Independent Director. “Under Hugh’s leadership, we have substantially completed our refranchising effort, invested in new technology, realigned our portfolio to focus on our core brands, upgraded our marketing and digital education programs, eliminated nonessential costs and successfully amended our revolving credit facility to provide the long-term flexibility needed to navigate the uncertainties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. We are grateful for Hugh’s efforts and wish him all the best in his retirement after a successful 44-year career.”