Andrew H. Madsen
President and Chief Operating Officer Darden RestaurantsDrew Madsen was named President and Chief Operating Officer of Darden Restaurants and elected to the Darden Board of Directors in August 2004. He oversees restaurant operations, marketing, culinary, beverage and human resources for approximately 170,000 employees and more than 1,600 Red Lobster, Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants in North America which deliver more than $6.0 billion in annual sales. Drew is also responsible for purchasing, distribution, real estate, and restaurant design and construction across all Darden brands.
Darden is the world's largest full-service restaurant operating company with annual sales of more than $7 billion. The company owns and operates 1,800 Red Lobster, Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, Bahama Breeze and Seasons 52 restaurants in North America, employs approximately 180,000 people and serves 400 million meals annually.
Prior to being named President and COO, Drew served as President of Olive Garden from April 2002 until November 2004, with responsibility for nearly 550 restaurants in North America, more than 60,000 employees and $2.4 billion in annual sales. Under his leadership, Olive Garden delivered record total sales, operating profit and return-on-sales while also achieving its 43rd consecutive quarter of same-restaurant sales growth.
Drew joined Olive Garden in December 1998 as Executive Vice President of Marketing, responsible for the brand management, advertising, culinary and beverage, consumer insights and media relations departments.
Before joining Olive Garden, Drew was President of International Master Publishers, a company that developed and direct-marketed consumer information products. Prior to his tenure at International Master Publishers, Drew worked at James River Corporation, a leading consumer paper products company (now part of Koch Industries), where he held progressively responsible positions with marketing, sales and operational responsibilities primarily for the Dixie business.
Drew began his career in 1980 as a Marketing Assistant at General Mills, Inc. While at General Mills, he worked on a variety of popular consumer food products including Wheaties Cereal and Yoplait Yogurt. His last position at General Mills was Vice President of Marketing.
Drew serves on the board of directors of The Talbots, Inc. and is a member of the Corporate Advisory Board of the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He graduated magna cum laude from DePauw University with a degree in Economics and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He earned an MBA in Marketing, with distinction, from the University of Michigan.