Jarden Corporation is making some significant changes in its top management. After its annual meeting in May, Martin E. Franklin, the company's chairman and chief executive, will become executive chairman. As such, he will oversee all aspects of corporate strategy, including growth initiatives, and corporate culture and philosophy. At the same time, James E. Lillie, the president and chief operating officer, will be named CEO and take over day-to-day operations for Jarden.
Lillie will work with Franklin and Ian Ashken, Jarden's vice chairman and chief financial officer, to drive growth across all of the company's business segments. He will also be nominated to join the board of directors at the May meeting.
The new set-up reflects the growth in the scope of the business that has taken place in the last few years. Jarden, which is now the parent company of such important sports brands as Coleman, K2, Völkl, Marker, Marmot and Rawlings, was founded in 2001, when it reported revenues of $300 million, almost all of them from the domestic U.S. market. The latest annual sales figure was $6.0 billion, with 40 percent of that coming from overseas. In 2011, Franklin said the company expects a 3 to 5 percent organic increase in revenues and a gain of at least 0.5 percentage points in the gross margin.
