Latest CEO of Minnetonka-based Fresh Vine Wine out after less than three months

Fresh Vine Wine Inc. CEO Roger Cockroft is out after serving less than three months in the post. The company's chief financial officer, Hitesh Dheri, is no longer at the company either.

The latest executive shuffling for the startup was disclosed in a Thursday filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The two executives left the company the previous Friday.

The board appointed Cockroft as CEO on April 25 to "drive growth." It named Dheri as CFO on May 31.

On Monday, Cockroft and Michelle Hawkins Whetstone both resigned from the Fresh Vine board of directors.

"The resignations of Mr. Cockroft and Ms. Whetstone were not due to a disagreement with the company on any matter relating to the company's operations, policies or practices," the filing said.

Founded in 2019, Fresh Vine is trying to make headway in the low-carbohydrate, low-calorie wine market.

But executive turnover has been a constant for Fresh Vine. Timothy Michaels was terminated as CEO in February 2022, two months after the company's initial public offering. Michaels is one of two former CEOs that have sued the company.

In November, Fresh Vine announced a restructuring.

On Wednesday the company installed Michael Pruitt as its interim CEO and appointed Keith Johnson as interim CFO. Johnson previously served as interim CFO in May.

Pruitt has been on the company's board since December 2021. His resume includes starting a financial services company, launching a venture capital firm and serving on the board of Hooters of America from 2011 to 2019.

Minnetonka-based Fresh Vine went public in December 2021 at $10 a share. On Thursday, it closed at 50 cents a share.

TV actors Nina Dobrev and Julianne Hough are co-founders and shareholders of the company.

For the first quarter of the year, Fresh Vine Wine reported revenue of about $409,000, a 56% drop from a year earlier. The company posted a net loss of $2 million.