Latest Headlines

Yum names Gibbs CFO; Papa hit with $11M verdict, and Brown-Forman returns to Scotch

Latest news, with a special focus on big Louisville employers; updated at 3:19 p.m.

Gibbs_rt
Gibbs

YUM just announced the promotion of David Gibbs, 53, to president and CFO, effective May 2. Gibbs, who’s been with the company 27 years, previously served as CEO of the Pizza Hut Division. He replaces interim CFO Dave Russell, who’ll return to Yum’s vice president, finance and corporate controller. (Press release.) A leadership shakeup at Yum has been in the cards for some time now (Business First). He arrives at a crucial time for the company (Nation’s Restaurant News). Former CFO Pat Grismer announced his resignation in December (Insider Louisville). Yum’s stock traded recently for $81.44, down less than 1%.

PAPA JOHN’S: In Georgia, a DeKalb County jury awarded $11 million to a woman claiming permanent brain damage from a crash with a pizza delivery vehicle on a rain-slicked road. The company’s lead attorney said the verdict would likely be appealed (Daily Report).

BROWN-FORMAN is getting back into the Scotch business after an 11-year absence with the $415.42 million purchase of the BenRiach Distillery in the north Scotland city of Newbridge. BenRiach’s brands include the Heart of Speyside. Today’s deal follows Brown-Forman’s sale of the Southern Comfort and Tuaca brands to Sazerac for $543.5 million three months ago (Reuters). Brown-Forman’s press release about the deal. Also, the company has named Eric Helms as new marketing director for its Global Travel Retail division (Travel Retail Business).

FORD: A threat to the Kentucky Truck Plant? Ford says it needs additional capacity for production of its next-generation Super Duty pickup (Courier-Journal).

TEXAS ROADHOUSE opened its newest location Monday, in Blackman Township, Mich (M Live).

In other news, Woodford Reserve followed an annual Kentucky Derby tradition and unveiled this year’s $1,000 Mint Julep yesterday (WLKY). The Al J. Schneider family drama over downtown’s Galt House grinds on in court (Insider Louisville). And on Wall Street, stocks were poised to tumble after Apple whiffed on earnings yesterday (MarketWatch).

Latest Headlines

Ford in a new push for self-driving cars, and Churchill shows off

A news summary focused on 10 big employers; updated 6:32 p.m.

FORD, Uber, Google and two other companies have formed a coalition to push for federal action they hope will speed self-driving cars to market (Reuters). Also, Ford reports first-quarter financial results Thursday; analyst forecasts. Ford’s shares closed at $13.76 a share today, up 18 cents.

CHURCHILL DOWNS unveiled $18 million in improvements at its namesake track in time for the Derby (CJ).

AMAZON won’t be a threat to FedEx or UPS anytime soon. Why? It doesn’t have the density and reach of UPS/FedEx, and retail customers won’t want to switch to a shipper run by one of their largest competitors. (Business Insider).

UPS pilots’ action will affect German flights (CJ). More signs emerge that Louisville could be the next city to get lightning-fast Google Fiber service: It’s all about “huts” (Business First). Appeals court denies request to stop Galt House sale (WDRB).

PAPA JOHN’S introduces new Pepperoni Rolls as their latest side option (Brand Eating). UPS mechanics say a contract proposed by the shipper would significantly increase health care costs and do little to improve wages (Business First).

Fresh ThymeIn other news, the new Fresh Thyme Farmers Market will give away a free bag of “healthy groceries” to the first 250 people in line before the store officially opens tomorrow; this is the two-year-old grocery chain’s first outlet here (CJ). SuperChefs plans to open a new restaurant on Bardstown Road in the Highlands, replacing an earlier location in St. Matthews that was destroyed by fire three months ago (WDRB). U.S. stock futures rise amid earnings deluge.

Food and Dining

Comfy CowComfy Cow: 4:10 p.m., Saturday, behind the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts, where the premium Louisville ice cream maker’s mobile stand was busy during Thunder Over Louisville. Boulevard enjoyed a large serving of Secretariat, which the company describes this way:

Comfy Cow joined forces with Penny Chenery and the Secretariat team to make this special commemorative ice cream honoring Big Red. Paying homage to the iconic blue and white silks of this super horse, this treat includes Barry Callebaut white chocolate ice cream loaded with chunks of our very own homemade blueberry cobbler.

Launched in 2007, Comfy Cow now has eight locations, including five in Louisville.

Real Estate

$16M, down from $20M: Mile-long front drive designed by Olmsted

An occasional look at premium homes on the market.

The address: 5802 River Road, 40059. Asking price: $16 million — and that’s down from $20 million in September, according to Zillow. Agency: Hoffman International Properties. The pitch:

An opportunity to own and live in an historic estate, only eight miles from downtown on 158 acres with four homes. The main house is 16,000 square feet, built in 1905. There’s a 3,500 square-foot carriage house, two 900 square-foot caretaker houses and an indoor pool. The 20,000 square-foot barn has 24 stalls and an apartment. The most unique feature is the front drive, which is about one mile long and was by the Olmsted Bros. around the time they designed the Louisville parks system. This estate offers the upmost in privacy and seclusion with great potential for development.

The A-list

Add Donald Trump, and 2016’s Barnstable-Brown would be on fire
Republican Presidential Candidates Particpate in Fox News Debate in Iowa
Kelly

Smokin’ hot “Chicago Fire” actor Taylor Kinney, Fox News journalist Megyn Kelly — who’s gone toe-to-toe with White House aspirant Donald Trump — plus “Arrow” star Stephen Amell are among the dozens of celebrities expected at the annual Barnstable-Brown Party on Derby Eve. The event, now in its 29th year, has raised and donated about $11.2 million to the Barnstable Brown Diabetes and Obesity Research Center at the University of Kentucky over the past nine years (CJ). Tickets for the black-tie May 6 party at the Barnstable home in the Highlands are $1,075 per person. The full guest list so far, according to WDRB. The party is a production of Diamond Derby Inc., a non-profit that makes its annual IRS tax return public under federal law; here’s the one for 2014.

Related: 12 Emily Post-approved rules for dinner parties, according to Vanity Fair, which is hosting its own Derby party this year for the first time (CJ).