Central Garden & Pet names Lahanas CEO and Brad Smith CFO, effective Sept. 29
Central Garden & Pet said Nicholas Lahanas, its chief financial officer since May 2017, will become chief executive and a board member effective September 29, 2024, replacing interim CEO Mary Beth Springer, who resigned effective September 28 and remains on the board. Bradley G. Smith, previously chief financial officer of the Pet Segment, will become chief financial officer on the same date. The filing discloses pay terms for both executives but no financial results.
Key points
- Nicholas Lahanas becomes CEO effective September 29, 2024, with an annual base salary of $900,000, a 100% target bonus from fiscal 2025, and a target annual equity grant of $1,000,000.
- Lahanas resigns as CFO effective September 28, 2024; Bradley G. Smith, age 58, becomes CFO effective September 29, 2024, with a $450,000 base salary, a 50% target bonus and a $250,000 target equity grant.
- Interim CEO Mary Beth Springer resigned effective September 28, 2024, and will remain on the Board of Directors.
- Both executives have at-will employment and 24-month post-employment consulting agreements, with Lahanas paid $3,432 monthly and Smith $2,500 monthly.
The filing
Written by AI (Anthropic Claude, claude-haiku-5-5) on Nov 8, 2026, 6:56 AM ET, from the text of the filing and its press-release exhibits only. Written later: this filing was briefed after the fact, when past filings were added to the site, so the brief may be read with hindsight; the filing itself is the record of what was known on September 27, 2024.
Briefs are written by AI from the filing text (each brief's own page names the model) and can contain mistakes — open the filing before acting on anything. Impact (1-5) and tone are the model's reading of the filing for shareholders, not a price forecast. Not investment advice.