Tom Fricke has joined HMSHost as president and chief executive officer, effective Jan. 16, 2012.        

For more than 20 years, Fricke has served in a variety of substantial leadership roles, most recently as the CEO of Cartridge World.

While at Cartridge World— one of the largest retailers of remanufactured ink and toner cartridges— Fricke oversaw 1,700 units operating in 63 countries. In addition to his experience leading Cartridge World, Fricke brings an abundance of hands-on experience with PepsiCo, Home Depot, and Giant Eagle grocery stores.

He has lived and worked abroad in strategic positions, most notably with PepsiCo in Sydney, Australia, and with Frito-Lay in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Fricke is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, where he completed his studies with a bachelor's of science in mechanical engineering. Upon graduation, he served as a Naval Intelligence Officer.

After several additional assignments, Fricke left the Navy to attend Stanford University, where he earned an MBA.

Locally, HMSHost operates restaurants and retail stores at Washington’s Dulles International and National Airports, at Thurgood Marshall Baltimore-Washington International Airport, and in the Maryland and Chesapeake travel plazas along I-95. The company also runs restaurants in the food courts of Arundel Mills Mall and the Leesburg Premium Outlets.        

HMSHost employs approximately 1000 associates throughout Maryland and Northern Virginia.