Brenda J. Lauderback is the Chairman of the Board for Denny’s, Inc. (DENN), the franchisor and operator of the nation’s largest family dining restaurant operator that has more than $2 billion annual sales. She also serves on the Boards of Sleep Number and Wolverine World Wide Corporations.
The Pittsburgh native began her career in retailing at the Gimbel’s Department store, then rose to a merchandise buyer at Dayton-Hudson in Minneapolis, now known as Target.
Lauderback became the company’s first African American to hold the position of Vice President and General Manager for shoes, cosmetics, accessories and intimate apparel. She moved to U.S. Shoe Corporation, later acquired by Nine West Group, LLC, to serve as President of the wholesale and manufacturing division and was responsible for all the company’s foreign offices.
Lauderback has received numerous awards, including the YWCA Greater Charleston “What Women Bring” Award for business achievement, the alumni achievement award from Robert Morris University, National Association of Corporate Director’s Top 100 Directors, National Restaurant News’ Power List of “Most Influential People in Foodservice” and the Ford Foundation’s Pinto Project Award.
Lauderback has a B.S. in Marketing from the Robert Morris University.
