Sign In
Upcoming Event
Free Newsletter
Manufacturing 2025: KEFFER, CHRIS
PRESIDENT AND CEO, STIHL INC., VIRGINIA BEACH
Virginia Business //September 2, 2025//
Manufacturing 2025: KEFFER, CHRIS
PRESIDENT AND CEO, STIHL INC., VIRGINIA BEACH
Virginia Business //September 2, 2025//
Keffer took over leadership of U.S. operations in 2023 for German outdoor power equipment manufacturer Stihl. He has been leading the company’s transition toward battery-powered equipment, a $60 million-plus investment that included converting warehouse space to make room for battery tool manufacturing.
Keffer joined the company in 2022 as vice president for sales and marketing and previously spent more than two decades with Stanley Black & Decker.
The U.S. division has more than 3,300 employees, about 2,700 of whom are in Virginia Beach. The United States is Stihl’s largest market and the U.S. division’s products are exported to 80 countries. In 2024, the company reported about $6.2 billion in global revenue, an increase of 1.1% over 2023.
In 2024, Keffer was named to the board of Winchester’s Trex Co. He also serves on the boards for the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute and the Food Bank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore.
INTERESTING PLACE I’VE TRAVELED: The Exumas and Abacos, super cool island chains that are part of the Bahamas
MOST VALUED POSSESSION: Babe Ruth autographed baseball given to me by my grandmother
Return to the full list of this category’s recipients.
