# Paul Lapadat

> Paul Lapadat is the founder and chief executive of Dessert Holdings, a St. Paul-based premium dessert manufacturer backed by Bain Capital. After beginning in finance at General Mills and moving through brand and operating roles at Kraft, Pillsbury and Conagra, he led Flagstone Foods through rapid growth and an $860 million sale to TreeHouse Foods. He then assembled Dessert Holdings around a product-first thesis: preserve specialist bakery capabilities while adding the discipline, safety systems, innovation speed and distribution reach needed to make artisan-style desserts at industrial scale.

- **Role:** Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Dessert Holdings
- **Organizations:** Dessert Holdings, Flagstone Foods, Conagra Foods, The Pillsbury Company, Kraft Foods, General Mills, Inventure Foods, Children’s Minnesota Foundation
- **Education:** Bachelor of Arts in Finance and Accounting, University of St. Thomas, Master of Business Administration in Marketing, UCLA Anderson School of Management
- **Known for:** Doubled Flagstone Foods’ size in three years as chief executive., Led Flagstone Foods before its 2014 acquisition by TreeHouse Foods for $860 million in cash, subject to adjustment., Built Dessert Holdings from a five-person founding team into a seven-brand premium-dessert platform.

## Career timeline

- **1988** — Began his career in finance at General Mills after graduating from the University of St. Thomas.
- **1990s** — Progressed through brand-management and marketing roles at Kraft Foods and The Pillsbury Company.
- **2001-2003** — Served as general manager of Conagra’s store-brands business after Conagra acquired International Home Foods.
- **2004-2010** — Served as president and chief operating officer of Conagra Foods’ Snack Foods Group.
- **2010-2015** — Led Flagstone Foods as chief executive, doubling the size of the business in three years.
- **2014** — Flagstone Foods was acquired by TreeHouse Foods for $860 million in cash, subject to working-capital adjustment.
- **2015-2016** — Formed the team and strategy that became Dessert Holdings, initially combining The Original Cakerie and Lawler’s Desserts.
- **2016-present** — Leads Dessert Holdings as founder and chief executive.
- **2021** — Continued leading Dessert Holdings after Bain Capital Private Equity agreed to acquire the company from Gryphon Investors.
- **2024** — Joined the Children’s Minnesota Foundation board of directors.
- **2025** — Expanded Dessert Holdings to seven brands with the acquisition of Willamette Valley Pie Company.

## Achievements

- Doubled Flagstone Foods’ size in three years as chief executive.
- Led Flagstone Foods before its 2014 acquisition by TreeHouse Foods for $860 million in cash, subject to adjustment.
- Built Dessert Holdings from a five-person founding team into a seven-brand premium-dessert platform.
- Expanded Dessert Holdings through acquisitions including Atlanta Cheesecake Company, Steven Charles, Dianne’s Fine Desserts, Kenny’s Great Pies and Willamette Valley Pie Company.
- Served as an independent director of Inventure Foods from 2013 to 2017.
- Appointed to the Children’s Minnesota Foundation board in 2024.

## Latest updates

- **2025-07** — Dessert Holdings acquired Willamette Valley Pie Company, bringing the portfolio to seven brands and adding hand-crafted fruit pies, cobblers and handheld pies.
- **2025-05** — Dessert Holdings unveiled a refreshed corporate identity and new products ahead of the IDDBA show, where Lapadat described the company as a one-stop shop for retail and foodservice customers.
- **2024-05** — Dessert Holdings acquired clean-label cream-pie manufacturer Kenny’s Great Pies.
- **2024-03** — Children’s Minnesota announced Lapadat as one of six new members of its Foundation board of directors.

## Links

- Website: https://dessertholdings.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-lapadat-a186a38a

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/paul-lapadat
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-27