ORLANDO, FLA. — WK Kellogg Co is looking to its next growth horizon as it winds down its separation from sister company Kellanova and transforms itself into a stand-alone cereal company.

“Our today is about cereal, and our tomorrow is about cereal and beyond cereal,” Gary Pilnick, chairman and chief executive officer of WK Kellogg, said at the 2025 Consumer Analyst Group of New York (CAGNY) Conference 2025 in Orlando.

Last week, when reporting fiscal 2024 results, Pilnick said WK Kellogg is “firmly on the path” to stabilizing its top line and expanding margins while largely completing its shift to an independent warehouse network, building its own scalable IT infrastructure and bolstering its direct salesforce. In addition, he said the Battle Creek, Mich.-based company expects to exit all transition services with Kellanova by mid-2025 and is executing on its half-billion supply chain modernization plan, noting that “our supply chain performance is already improving.”

At the CAGNY event, Pilnick gave analysts a peek at how WK Kellogg is “building for tomorrow” in terms of “Horizons” phases of its strategic plan.

“You’re hearing that today we are focused on delivering Horizon 1; we know there is so much to play for, so much value to create as we do so,” he said. “As we do that, we’re also laying the groundwork and preparing for Horizon 2, which is our tomorrow.”

In its presentation, WK Kellogg highlighted licensing, distribution, mergers and acquisitions, and joint ventures as “potential growth structures.”

“We do believe inorganic growth can play an important role in our future,” Pilnick said. “It starts with ensuring we are leveraging our infrastructure and capabilities. We’re a branded, center-of-store dry food company, and we would stay close to our core. That would allow us to leverage our scalable infrastructure and utilize those large-cap capabilities to drive synergy and value, and we would focus on exploring brands or businesses that complement our portfolio and accelerate our top line and profit growth. And importantly, we would maintain our balance sheet strength, being a good steward of cash.”

Meanwhile, inorganic growth could “come in various forms,” he explained.

“Lower investment alternatives such as distribution, as we use our distribution network and salesforce,” he said. “Alternatively, we could license our brands into other categories. Perhaps our inorganic growth could come in the form of tuck-in M&A or joint ventures. I led corporate development for The Kellogg Co. and saw the power of reshaping our portfolio through both of these frameworks. We share this with you today to give you a sense of where and how we can expand in the future.”

WK Kellogg’s innovation “platforms” by food, brand, format, segment and nutritional provide a scheme for expansion in and beyond cereal, Pilnick said. Examples include Glazed Donut Hole versions of Frosted Flakes, Apple Jacks and Krave cereal in the food platform; Cocoa Frosted Mini Wheats and Blueberry Bran Crunch under the brand platform; and Go Packs for Frosted Flakes, Froot Loops and Pops cereal and Bear Naked granola To-Go Packs in the format platform. Segment innovation includes Kellogg’s Extra and Bear Naked Oats & Honey in granola, while Special K Triple Berry Blend and Kashi Organic Cocoa Clusters cereal fall under nutritional platform innovation.

“This new framework focuses on effectively driving our core business and delivering exciting innovation, both of which are part of today’s playbook, but it includes new and different ways to drive growth,” Pilnick said. “What’s even newer would be capitalizing on green shoots and expanding into underpenetrated white spaces in the category, such as certain channels and formats. We’re clear on what we need to do. We have the assets to do it, and we also have the team to execute.”

WK Kellogg believes the capabilities now being built are “unique for a company our size,” Pilnick noted. The company, spun off from The Kellogg Co. and Kellanova in October 2023, totaled fiscal 2024 net sales of $2.71 billion.