John Dillon is a nationally recognized, award-winning CEO and board advisor with a track record of driving transformative growth across the retail, restaurant, hospitality, sports, and consumer sectors.
He currently serves as Chief Executive Officer and President of la Madeleine Bakery & Café, a fast-casual brand with nearly 100 cafés across the U.S., where he is leading the company’s modernization and expansion across domestic and international markets.
A former Chief Marketing Officer recognized among the best in the world, John built his reputation as a strategic brand architect before expanding into full general management and P&L leadership. His 16-year tenure at Denny’s Corporation included roles as President, Chief Brand Officer, and Chief Marketing Officer, where he led the acclaimed revitalization of the 1,600-unit franchise system. Earlier in his career, he held key leadership roles with the National Basketball Association (Houston Rockets), Yum! Brands (Pizza Hut), and PepsiCo, experiences that built his expertise in brand building, franchise growth, and enterprise transformation.
John is also the founder of HMS Growth Partners, a consulting and advisory firm that partners with consumer, franchise, retail, restaurant, and hospitality businesses and executives to sharpen strategy, elevate brand relevance, drive operational execution, and scale for growth. Through HMS, he and his team collaborate with founders, CEOs, PE firms and investors to unlock performance and enterprise value—from emerging startups to private equity–backed and legacy brands.
He currently serves in advisory roles across several industries, spanning AI and data-driven technology startups, consumer and retail brands, and philanthropic organizations.
Beyond his corporate and advisory work, John serves on the Board of Directors for Breakthrough T1D (Texas Chapter), where he chairs the Marketing Committee. He recently completed his tenure as Executive in Residence and advisor for Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business, where he also established an endowment supporting the university’s Women in Business initiative. He previously served a decade on Clemson University’s Erwin Center Advisory Board, and on the Board of Directors for the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), where he chaired the Alliance for Inclusive & Multicultural Marketing.
A sought-after speaker and mentor, John has been recognized among the Forbes Top 50 CMOs, Business Insider’s World’s Best CMOs, PRWeek Power 50, Adweek 50, and Nation’s Restaurant News Power 50, and is an Ad Age Media Maven for his leadership in brand transformation, innovation, and inclusive growth.