Franchising

Steele Brands CEO steps down, names replacement

Kelly C. Baltes has been named CEO of Steele Brands. Provided

November 7, 2022

Steele Brands, a Minnesota-based company that owns Crisp & Green, Stalk & Spade and Paco & Lime, has hired Kelly C. Baltes as CEO of its brand development company, Steele Brands Management.

Baltes, who has over 28 years of restaurant industry leadership experience, most recently served as president for Maggiano's Little Italy, where he helped refresh the brand experience, improve guest metrics and develop the business model to unlock sustainable growth with system revenues of $425 million, according to a company press release.

Baltes succeeds founder and CEO Steele Smiley, who remains the sole controlling shareholder in the business and will continue to support the company as executive chairman of the board. Smiley founded the company in 2016, and it now has over 200 stores open or in development across 25 states.

"Kelly is an industry veteran, and I am confident in his ability to expand the Steele Brands footprint," Smiley said in the release. "Kelly and I met a few years ago, and our relationship has grown to a point where I have 100% confidence in his ability. Kelly is a true operator — he literally grew up in this business, and has played every operational role within a restaurant system, from busing tables early in his career to CEO. But what makes Kelly the most impressive to me is his passion around people — he truly wants the best for all our employees, franchise partners and customers, making Kelly uniquely qualified to lead Steele Brands into the next phase of growth and expansion."