Portland-based Covetrus reconfigures its international leadership

Courtesy / Covetrus Bekki Kidd and András Bolcskei have joined the senior leadership of animal health company Covetrus Inc.

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By William Hall

The retirement of two senior executives at Covetrus Inc. (Nasdaq: CVET) is prompting the Portland-based animal health company to change up leadership of its geographic markets.

András Bolcskei has joined Covetrus as president of the company’s International business unit, a newly created position that combines the presidential roles for Europe and for Asia-Pacific and emerging markets. Those positions were held respectively by Mike Ellis and David Hinton, who are retiring, a news release Monday said.

Bolcskei has more than 25 years of experience and a background in animal health pharmaceuticals, including at both Merck & Co. and Pfizer, where he held leadership roles across Europe and Africa. He is also a veterinarian.

Both Ellis and Hinton were promoted to their roles last year following the departure of Covetrus’ North American president and global supply chain officer, Matthew Leonard. Ellis and Hinton previously served in similar capacities for the veterinary products business of Henry Schein Inc. (Nasdaq: HSIC), which spun off and merged with Portland-based Vets First Choice to form Covetrus in 2019.

Bolcskei began his new role Monday and is responsible for all business outside of North America. He reports to Covetrus President and CEO Ben Wolin, a spokeswoman told Mainebiz.

In addition, Covetrus has added Bekki Kidd as head of North America operations and global operational excellence.

Kidd joins the company from Cardinal Health, where she held leadership roles in global planning, manufacturing, supply chain and operational excellence over the last 10 years. She has also worked for Abbott Nutrition, the Coca Cola Co., GE Superabrasives and PPG Industries.

Kidd, who started at Covetrus last week, reports to the president for North America, Matthew Malenfant.

The two new roles are "in alignment with Covetrus’ strategic plan to drive synchronization and optimization of the business," the company said in the news release.

Wolin added, “Both András and Bekki bring a wealth of experience to their roles. Their appointments will further our progress driving better health and business outcomes for our customers.

“We are grateful for the leadership provided by Mike Ellis and David Hinton, which helped Covetrus get to this stage. Both have been instrumental in our success over the years, and their legacies will carry forward with us.”

Covetrus, which provides a wide range of technology and services for veterinary practices worldwide, has 5,500 employees and is completing construction of a new headquarters in Portland. The company last month reported first-quarter net sales of $1.1 billion, an increase of 3% compared to the first quarter of 2020.