John Dillon has stepped down as CEO and president of la Madeleine, roughly a year and a half after joining the French café and bakery chain.
Dillon announced the end of his tenure in a public LinkedIn post. He described work on hospitality, the menu, value, café design and franchise development, and thanked the team. He did not announce his next role.
La Madeleine is now led by Lionel Ladouceur, CEO of worldwide café bakery operations for parent company Groupe Le Duff, the brand told Nation’s Restaurant News.
The chain announced Dillon’s appointment as president in January 2025. At the time, it said he would focus on sales, franchise recruitment, profitability, restaurant design, guest experience and menu innovation.
Dillon brought a long restaurant-industry background to the role, including more than 16 years at Denny’s and a period as that chain’s president.
In his departure post, he pointed to changes including all-day brunch, expanded value options and new café prototypes. Those are his assessment of the team’s work during his tenure.
The leadership change leaves Ladouceur guiding the brand as it carries those menu and franchise initiatives forward. The available announcements do not identify a separately appointed successor beyond the parent-company executive’s current leadership.
