Andrew Crawford

About Andrew Crawford

Andrew Crawford (age 46) is an independent Class III director of European Wax Center, serving on the board since April 2021 and previously on EWC Ventures’ board since September 2018. He is a Managing Director and Global Head of General Atlantic’s Consumer sector, sits on GA’s Management Committee, and chairs its Portfolio Committee. He holds a B.S. in Business Administration & Accounting from Washington and Lee University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School .

Past Roles

External Roles

Board Governance

• Classification/tenure: Class III director; term expires at 2027 annual meeting .
• Independence: Board determined he is independent under Nasdaq rules .
• Committee leadership: Chairs the Compensation Committee (members: Andrew Crawford [Chair], Laurie Ann Goldman, Alexa Bartlett) and Chairs the Nominating & Governance Committee (members: Andrew Crawford [Chair], Julia Hunter, Dorvin D. Lively, Alexa Bartlett) .
• Attendance: Board met 9 times in 2024; each director attended at least 75% of aggregate board and committee meetings on which they served .
• Sponsor rights affecting governance: Under the Stockholders’ Agreement, General Atlantic Equityholders (Crawford’s firm) retain director nomination rights and, while entitled to at least one nominee, have the right to seat one nominee on each board committee, to the extent permitted by Nasdaq. GA consent is required for significant corporate actions while owning ≥25% of outstanding common stock .

Fixed Compensation

Note: Other non-employee directors generally receive $50,000 cash retainer and ~$125,000 in RSUs; audit chair receives an additional $20,000. Crawford, as a sponsor designee, received no director compensation in 2024 .

Performance Compensation

Other Directorships & Interlocks

• External boards: Authentic Brands Group, Joe & the Juice, Torchy’s Tacos, Buff City Soap .
• Interlock: Buff City Soap’s CEO is EWCZ director Dorvin D. Lively, while Crawford serves on Buff City Soap’s board—creating a network tie between two EWCZ directors. No related-party transaction with Buff City Soap is disclosed, but the relationship is notable for information flow and potential perceived alignment .

Expertise & Qualifications

• Private equity consumer investor with >20 years in consumer and retail; leadership roles at GA and Advent .
• Governance: Chairs both Compensation and Nominating & Governance committees, indicating board confidence in his governance expertise .
• Education: B.S., Washington and Lee University; M.B.A., Harvard Business School .
• Independence affirmed under Nasdaq; firm affiliation with controlling stockholder group (GA) retains structural influence via nomination/consent rights .

Equity Ownership

Implication: Crawford’s economic alignment appears primarily via General Atlantic’s large ownership rather than personal holdings; no pledging allowed at the company level .

Governance Assessment

• Strengths

  • Independent under Nasdaq with substantial consumer and board experience; chairs two key committees, suggesting governance capability and engagement. Board reports ≥75% attendance for all directors in 2024 .
  • No director compensation accepted (common for sponsor designees), reducing personal fee-based conflicts; broader director pay uses fixed retainers and time-based RSUs (no director performance metrics) .
  • Company maintains anti-hedging/pledging policy and related-party transaction oversight by the Audit Committee, reducing transactional conflict risk .

• Watch items / potential red flags

  • Sponsor influence: General Atlantic holds substantial ownership and retains director nomination and sweeping consent rights over major corporate actions while owning ≥25%, including CEO appointment/removal and M&A thresholds; GA also entitled to a nominee on each committee. Crawford chairs Compensation and Nominating & Governance under this framework—formally independent but structurally affiliated influence persists .
  • Tax Receivable Agreement (TRA): Pre-IPO members (including GA affiliates) have consent rights over settlements in tax disputes affecting TRA payments; payments could be substantial and may diverge from realized tax savings, potentially misaligning interests in certain scenarios .
  • Interlock: Overlap with Buff City Soap (Crawford as director; Lively as CEO and EWCZ director) introduces a network tie; while no related-party transaction is disclosed, investors may scrutinize information flow and influence across boards .
  • Ownership alignment: Crawford has no reported personal beneficial ownership; alignment primarily via GA’s stake rather than personal share ownership .

• Compensation Committee interlocks

  • None of the Compensation Committee members have been company officers in the prior three years; no executive officer serves on another entity’s comp committee with reciprocal service at EWCZ (reduces classic “comp interlock” risk) .