Briggs & Stratton today announced that Brian Hazelton has joined the company as senior vice president and president of its power business unit, which consists of Briggs & Stratton residential engines, Vanguard commercial engines, Vanguard lithium-ion commercial batteries and service.
Hazelton’s career spans engines for commercial vehicles, light and heavy equipment for construction and mining, specialized equipment for concrete pumping and placement and RVs. Most recently, he had been with Winnebago Industries, where he had been named president of Newmar on August 27.
Prior to that, he served as the CEO of Schwing America, where he led the company through Chapter 11 bankruptcy into a position of growth, with improved processes and a revived culture. Hazelton also held various roles with Detroit Diesel Corp., both domestically and internationally.
“Brian’s leadership and experience in transforming businesses aligns with our repositioning of Briggs & Stratton as a power agnostic solutions provider,” said Steve Andrews, president and CEO of Briggs & Stratton. “While residential engines remain an important part of our business, Briggs & Stratton is focused on evolving market trends. The rapidly-growing commercial engines market and electrified products are propelling the company into entirely new markets, requiring the attention of an innovative leader who embraces and thrives on change.”
In September 2020, KPS Capital Partners, through a newly formed affiliate, acquired substantially all of the assets of Briggs & Stratton and appointed Andrews president and CEO. Hazelton is the latest addition to his newly-revamped executive leadership team.
