ABF CEO Stubblefield Announces Retirement

rkansas Best Corp. said Wednesday that the chief executive officer of its ABF Freight System Inc. unit, David E. Stubblefield, will retire in January 2003.

(Provided) Outgoing ABF CEO David E. Stubblefield (left) and his successor, Robert A. Davidson. Stubblefield plans to retire in January 2003.

Robert Davidson, the company’s current vice president of marketing and pricing, will succeed Stubblefield, who has been ABF’s president and CEO since 1995.

"In the late 50s my father, Robert A. Young, Jr., hired David Stubblefield as a freight salesman for ABF after a chance meeting while giving him a ride to the wedding of a mutual friend," said Robert A. Young, III, Arkansas Best chief executive officer.

"Thus began a 43-year career with ABF that saw Dave positively affect all of the key areas of our company,” Young said. “David Stubblefield has truly helped shape ABF into the successful company that it is today.”

Davidson has been with Arkansas Best for 30 years – beginning his tenure at the company in the economic analysis department in 1972. He holds undergraduate and advanced degrees from the University of Arkansas.

"Bob Davidson has reported directly to me for twenty-three of his thirty years at ABF," said Stubblefield. "Bob is fully prepared for this challenge and I have complete confidence in his ability to lead the company. I have been planning for retirement with the expectation that ABF will achieve even greater success in the future."

Arkansas Best Corp. is ranked No. 17 in the Transport Topics list of the 100 largest trucking companies in the United States and Canada.

(Click here for the full press release.)

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