David Gibbs will retire as CEO of Yum Brands early in 2026, the company said on Monday.
Gibbs, a 36-year veteran of the Louisville, Kentucky-based company, told Yum’s board that he will retire in the first quarter of next year. The owner of Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut will use that time to search for his successor.
The retirement will end what will have been a six-year term as CEO of Yum, a period in which he guided the company through the pandemic, its acquisition and the explosive growth of digital sales. Yum Brands generates more than 50% of its sales through digital channels and more recently created the technology platform Byte by Yum. It also reached a deal with chipmaker Nvidia to bring AI to restaurants worldwide.
The company also acquired its fourth chain, the fast-casual burger concept Habit Burger & Grill. And under Gibbs Yum engineered ultra-rapid store growth outside the U.S., tripling the pace of new-unit development. Yum’s chains now have more than 61,000 locations worldwide, particularly with KFC. Its Taco Bell brand, meanwhile, continues to be one of the top-performing U.S. fast-food chains and has started making progress internationally.
David Gibbs | Photo courtesy of Yum Brands
Yum’s stock has risen by about 50% since Gibbs took over. “I set out to strengthen and broaden the appeal of our iconic brands, build industry-leading digital capabilities, dramatically accelerate the pace of profitable new-unit development and amplify our people-first culture,” Gibbs said in a statement. “I am pleased with the progress we have made on all fronts and know that Yum Brands is now stronger and more resilient than ever.”
At the same time, Yum has largely struggled more recently in the U.S. outside of Taco Bell, as both Pizza Hut and KFC lost some of the gains they made during the pandemic and have closed units. Habit, meanwhile, has generated some unit growth since Yum acquired the brand but its same-store sales have been mired in challenges: It hasn’t reported growth in the key metric since the first quarter of 2022.
KFC recently announced the move of its longtime home in Louisville to Plano, Texas, where Pizza Hut—and most Yum executives—are based.
Gibbs joined Yum Brands in 1989 and has held numerous leadership roles with the company, the largest restaurant operator in the world by unit count. He was Yum’s chief financial officer in 2016, when he played a key role in the 2016 spinoff of Yum China. He also led international and served as the company’s chief strategy officer.
Brian Cornell, CEO of the retailer Target and Yum’s chairman, commended Gibbs “for his dedication to Yum Brands and applaud his transformative impact on the company.” He also said the board “is committed to overseeing a thorough succession planning process.”
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