Michelle Lorge has been named president of the Simple Mills business of Flowers Foods Inc., the company announced March 2.
Lorge succeeds Simple Mills founder and CEO Katlin Smith, “who has made a personal decision to step down to spend more time with her family and on philanthropic interests, and will continue with the company in an advisory capacity,” according to Flowers Foods.
Lorge formerly served as chief marketing, innovation and mission officer for Simple Mills. She reports to Ryals McMullian, chairman and CEO of Thomasville, Georgia-based Flowers Foods.
McMullian said of Lorge, “Michelle has been instrumental in shaping Simple Mills into the mission-driven, high-growth brand it is today. Her deep understanding of the business, strong leadership skills, and unwavering commitment to the company’s purpose make her exceptionally well-suited to lead Simple Mills into its next chapter.”
He also praised Smith. “We are grateful to Katlin for her vision and leadership and look forward to her continued support in an advisory role.”
Growing the startup to success
Lorge joined Simple Mills in 2015 – three years after its founding – and helped build the brand alongside Smith. The startup has since grown into a well-known natural cracker, cookie, bar and baking mix brand with distribution in more than 30,000 stores nationwide such Whole Foods Market, Sprouts Farmers Market, Target, Walmart and Costco, as well as Amazon.
Prior to joining Simple Mills, Lorge spent 10-plus years at Kraft Foods, where she led brand marketing and product innovation for brands including Philadelphia, A.1., Grey Poupon and Cool Whip.
“I am honored to step into this role and continue the incredible work Katlin started,” Lorge said.
“Simple Mills was founded on a belief that food can have a profound impact on human and planetary health, and that belief continues to inspire everything we do. I look forward to continuing to work with our talented team to advance our people and planet mission and broaden our impact to ignite meaningful change in the food industry and beyond.”
“Building Simple Mills has been one of the greatest privileges of my life,” said Smith, who has been widely recognized for her entrepreneurial achievements, receiving honors such as Forbes 30 Under 30 and Inc. 30 Under 30. “Michelle has been by my side shaping Simple Mills for many years and is deeply aligned with the mission and values that define who we are. I have full confidence in her ability to lead Simple Mills into the future.”
Flowers Foods (NYSE: FLO) is one of the largest producers of packaged bakery foods in the U.S. with 2025 net sales of $5.3 billion. Flowers operates bakeries across the country that produce a wide range of bakery products. Among the company’s top brands are Nature’s Own, Dave’s Killer Bread, Canyon Bakehouse, Simple Mills, Wonder and Tastykake.