John Dillon has stepped down as CEO and president of La Madeleine, after about a year and a half.
Dillon posted on LinkedIn that he closed his chapter with the bakery-café chain last month, six months after an “Ignite the Joy” menu overhaul and transformation plan was put in place. Just last week, La Madeleine rolled out a new specialty coffee program, along with a few signature lattes, as part of that plan.
Dillon also touted other accomplishments in his post, saying, “We put hospitality at the center of the cafes, and guest ratings climbed.”
Since he took the helm, La Madeleine has launched a new brunch menu, new value offerings and an elevated bakery, he said. “We put the brand on pace for its strongest year of café openings in almost a decade, introduced a new prototype built for franchise growth, and built a pipeline to match,” he wrote.
And he noted that the brand was ranked No. 1 among 160+ brands for Gen Z value perceptions in Technomic’s Ignite data.
La Madeleine ended 2025 with domestic sales of $175.5 million, a more than 10% decline from the prior year. The chain had 86 U.S. units, down 5%, according to Technomic.
La Madeleine is owned by France-based Groupe Le Duff, and has a U.S. base in Dallas.
Dillon, meanwhile, is also founder and managing partner of HMS Growth Partners, a growth advisory firm. In his post, he did not say what his plans are for the next chapter, and he did not immediately respond to requests for more information.
An industry veteran, Dillon previously spent 16 years with Denny’s, most recently as that brand’s president. He is also a marketer who has worked with Pizza Hut and the Houston Rockets.
La Madeleine, likewise, did not immediately respond to questions about Dillon’s replacement.
