Ted AllingChattanooga businessman and entrepreneur Ted Alling has been elected to the Coca-Cola Bottling Co. United board of directors.
Also, longtime Chattanooga resident Robert Cannon Jones IV is retiring from the board after two decades of service, according to the Birmingham, Alabama-based bottler that services Chattanooga.
Alling joins the company's board effective immediately, the company said in a news release. According to the company, he brings innovative business experience and a passion for creating economic opportunities in Chattanooga, which is home to the world's first Coca-Cola bottler.
"Ted has acquired a wealth of entrepreneurial expertise and extensive knowledge of the logistics industry, which will be very beneficial as Coca-Cola United continues to grow and excel in customer service," Claude B. Nielsen, chairman of the 120-year-old bottler, said in a news release. "His passion for using his entrepreneurial achievements to create opportunities for others in Chattanooga is truly inspiring and will positively impact the community for generations to come."
Earlier this year, Jones, who has served on the board since 2002, announced his intention to retire in April 2023, the bottler said.
"Robby has been a great advisor and supporter for the past two decades, during which time Coca-Cola United more than tripled in franchise territory and number of associates," Nielsen said. "We will always be grateful for Robby's passion for our business and his special affection for the Chattanooga community and our associates located there."
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Nielsen said Jones has been "a strong advocate of United's culture, where associates, consumers, customers and community are at the center of our local business model."
According to the company, Alling's election to the board continues United's tradition of having representation on its board of directors from across the company's geographic territory, with Chattanooga being "the cornerstone given its historic significance in the Coca-Cola system and as a dynamic community with extraordinary Coca-Cola loyalty."
Robert Jones IVAlling is the co-founder and former CEO of a $500 million startup, Access America, which later merged with the United Parcel Service subsidiary Coyote Logistics. That initial success allowed Alling and his fellow Access America founders to create Lamp Post Group, a venture capital firm and tech-focused incubator in Chattanooga.
Lamp Post has invested $36 million into the local entrepreneurial ecosystem, spawning a list of successful startups, including Bellhops, Ambition, Chattanooga Whiskey and Steam Logistics.
In 2016, Alling co-founded Dynamo, a venture capital fund aimed at revolutionizing the logistics industry. As managing director of the fund – one of the largest in the Southeast – Alling works to ensure Dynamo remains a global knowledge leader in logistics technology by supporting innovative new businesses in the field, the bottler said.
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Most recently, Alling became one of five partners in Brickyard, a venture fund and portfolio group that provides capital and focus for promising young companies to relocate to Chattanooga. Through this latest effort, Alling and his partners share lessons learned and create a focused environment for founders to flourish, especially in the most difficult days of early entrepreneurial endeavors, according to the Coca-Cola United.
Also, in 2018, Alling and his wife opened the Chattanooga Preparatory School, the company said. An all-boys charter school, Chattanooga Prep is designed to provide educational opportunities for those in the city's urban communities. It opened its inaugural class of sixth graders in August 2018 and now has more than 300 students.
Alling has served as president of the Chattanooga Transportation Club, trustee of the Howard Fund, and on the board of directors of Pearl Ministries and the Tennessee Aquarium. He was honored with the Young Alumni Award by Samford University, where he is an alumnus, and has received the Community Impact Award by the Urban League. He is also in the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Business Hall of Fame.
Alling and his wife, Kelly, have three children.
Coca-Cola United was founded in 1902 and is the second-largest privately held Coca-Cola bottler in North America and the third-largest bottler of Coca-Cola products in the U.S. Now with its fifth generation of family working in the business, Coca-Cola United has about 10,000 associates in more than 50 facilities across six Southeastern states, the company said.
Revenues in 2021 were about $3.4 billion, according to the company.
- Compiled by Mike Pare