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Pizza Hut Global CEO Aaron Powell will step down from his position following the close of the sale of Pizza Hut to LongRange Capital, Powell wrote in a LinkedIn post Friday

LongRange asked him to stay on, but Powell said he decided that this was the time to depart, according to the post. 

Powell joined Pizza Hut in 2021 after serving as president of Asia Pacific for Kimberly-Clark, according to his LinkedIn profile. He also worked as a manager for Bain & Company and as an account manager and account executive for Procter & Gamble. 

“I've always believed in leaving things better than you found them — and this business is in a better state,” Powell wrote. “I am proud of what we did together: one global Pizza Hut, historic unit growth, strong international growth, and a US business that is on the right track delivering positive transaction growth.”

Powell did not indicate what his next move will be nor who might replace him, but said he was “energized to see what comes next,” and there was “more to come.” 

Pizza Hut owner Yum Brands decided to sell the pizza brand after engaging in a strategic review last November following several quarters of same-store sales declines at the brand. Yum closed hundreds of underperforming locations as part of its strategic review.

LongRange Capital previously agreed to purchase Pizza Hut’s non-China business for $1.5 billion. Yum China will buy the China business for $1.2 billion. These transactions are expected to close during the third quarter. 

Pizza Hut did not respond to a request for comment by press time.