Matthews, currently president and ceo of the distributor's Columbia, SC, operation, and Brawner, currently executive vice president for that same branch, will assume their new duties on Jan. 1, 2007
Matthews, 56, began his career at Sysco in 1984 as a marketing associate at Lankford-Sysco Food Services, Inc., Pocomoke, MD, where he progressed to district sales manager in 1987. Two years later he transferred to Sysco's Harrisonburg, VA, subsidiary as general sales manager. That company later merged with another Sysco company to become Sysco Food Services of Virginia, Inc., and in 1990 Matthews was promoted to vice president of sales for that company.
In 1992 he moved to Sysco Food Services of Central Pennsylvania, Inc., as vice president of sales and three years later advanced to senior vice president. He was promoted to executive vice president of Sysco Food Services of Charlotte in 1997 and to his current position in January, 2001.
Matthews is a native of Powhatan, VA. He is a graduate of James Madison University, located in Harrisonburg, VA, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business management and marketing. He and his wife, Shane, have a son and a daughter and will be relocating to North Carolina in the near future.
Brawner, 49, began his career in 1982 as a merchandiser at Sysco's Memphis, TN, operation, Hardin's Sysco Food Services, LLC. He was named merchandising manager of that company in 1989, director of merchandising in 1993 and vice president of merchandising the following year. In 1996 Brawner was promoted to vice president of merchandising and marketing and in 2001 he transferred to the newly-established Columbia facility as senior vice president of merchandising and marketing and was promoted to executive vice president of that company in 2004.
Brawner is a native of Memphis, where he also attended Memphis State University. He and his wife, Linda, have a daughter and two sons and reside in Columbia.
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