Ted Hall, who tried to shake up Mondavi, gets Peet’s seat

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From Times staff writer Jerry Hirsch:

Peet’s Coffee & Tea Inc. made an interesting addition to its board of directors today: Ted W. Hall, who has a controversial reputation in the gourmet food business.

As chairman of Robert Mondavi Corp. in 2004, Hall advocated selling off the company’s high-end brands, including its landmark Napa Valley winery and famous vineyards, to concentrate on the firm’s Woodbridge wines, the low end of the business.

That plan sparked a boardroom fight that pushed out of the company several Mondavi family members, including R. Michael Mondavi, the vice chairman.

Some industry analysts said it didn’t make sense for a company known as a luxury brand to suddenly shift its focus to the budget end of the business, where it would bump up against low-profit-margin labels such as Yellow Tail and the $1.99 Charles Shaw brand (‘Two Buck Chuck,’ sold at Trader Joe’s).

The fighting ended when Constellation Brands Inc. stepped in and purchased Mondavi for $1 billion in December 2004.

Hall, who was the first person outside the Mondavi family to hold the chairman’s post at the winemaker, walked out of the Constellation deal with a $2.5-million bonus.

Hall currently is a general partner of Long Meadow Ranch and president of Long Meadow Winery in Napa Valley as well as managing director of Mayacamas Associates, a consulting firm. He’s also on the board of retailer Williams-Sonoma Inc.

Patrick O’Dea, chief executive of Emeryville-based Peet’s, said Hall’s ‘work with other premier consumer brands will serve the company well.’

Peet’s shares fell $1.30 to $25.41 today amid a broad market sell-off. The stock had been faring well lately, rising from $19 in July to a recent high of almost $29 on Sept. 26.

Peet’s is down 12.6% year to date, compared with a 37% plunge in shares of rival Starbucks Corp.