Ice cream and convenience-store chain United Dairy Farmers (UDF) announced Monday that Brad Lindner, president and CEO, is retiring from the company after 47 years. Michael Ahmed has been named CEO, effective immediately.
Lindner served the last 27 years as president and CEO of the Cincinnati-based c-store chain his father helped to found.
“Starting in late 2024, we started to activate our succession plans related to leadership of the company,” Lindner said. “This will be a significant shift for us as we transition from being a family-led organization to one operated by non-owners with continued involvement and oversight from the Lindner family via our board of directors.”
Lindner will lead the onboarding process for Ahmed before transitioning into the role of chairman of the UDF board of directors, the retailer said.
Ahmed joins UDF from the Gorilla Glue Co., where he served as COO for the past five years. His resume also includes senior roles at Tyson Foods/Advanced Pierre Foods, Kik Custom Products and Procter & Gamble.
“Michael has a strong background in food manufacturing, supply chain, distribution/warehousing and logistics, which were key criteria when we began our search,” Lindner said.
This year, UDF celebrated its 85th anniversary, and Ahmed said, “it’s an honor to join a company with such a rich heritage and strong foundation.”
Lindner said the timing of this change in leadership is right for a variety of reasons, including “the overall health and momentum of the company.”
“The last 10 years have seen phenomenal growth, including the completion of a $25 million investment project in the company’s Norwood ice cream plant, a brand new family bakery facility and the building and remodeling of over 50 stores across our footprint,” Lindner said.
- United Dairy Farmers is No. 49 on CSP’s 2025 Top 202 ranking of U.S. c-store chains by store count.
UDF is a privately owned, regional dairy-based c-store chain that specializes in hand-dipped ice cream, which it crafts into sundaes, ice cream floats and sodas, shakes and malts. As of Jan. 1, the c-store chain has over 170 stores.
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