Daymon Worldwide Announces Leadership Transition For Continued Growth

The Board of Directors of Daymon Worldwide announced the appointment of Jim Holbrook as CEO of Daymon Worldwide, effective September 1, 2015. Holbrook also joins the Daymon Board of Directors. Holbrook succeeds Carla Cooper, who earlier this year informed the Board of Directors of her intention to retire. Cooper will actively support the CEO transition process and remain in an advisory capacity until the end of 2016. All of her direct reports will report directly to Holbrook. “Daymon is truly fortunate to have enjoyed the benefits of Carla’s leadership for nearly seven years, including nearly five years as CEO,” says Ron Daitz, non-executive chairman of the Daymon Worldwide Board of Directors. “Her vision for the company, her global experience, relentless work ethic and unsurpassed customer relationships helped transform the company at a critical time.” “We are delighted to have found in Jim Holbrook a successor eminently prepared to pick up where Carla leaves off,” Daitz continues. “Jim is a dynamic leader with extensive executive experience in business operations, marketing and brand-building. He is ideally suited to drive further growth and change for Daymon Worldwide.” Holbrook’s most recent leadership experience was at Post Holdings, which he joined in 2011 when it was spun off from Ralcorp. He was named president of Post Foods, the flagship cereal business, in 2012, and in 2014 was appointed president and CEO of Post Consumer Brands, which comprised the cereal business as well as Power Bar and other company acquisitions in the nutrition products category. Holbrook started his career at Procter & Gamble following his graduation from Vanderbilt University in 1981. After three years at P&G, he moved to Ralston Purina (now Nestlé Purina) where he spent twelve years in roles of increasing responsibility in marketing, brand management, sales, and operations management. As vice president, customer development, he was responsible for growing a $300 million sales base, including the design and implementation of an integrated sales and marketing team. For the last two years at Ralston Purina, Holbrook served as chief executive of Beechnut and assistant to the chairman of Ralston Purina. Holbrook left Ralston Purina in 1996 to become CEO of Zipatoni, an ad agency of which he was a part owner. He sold the business to Interpublic Group in 2001, where he remained for another three years in an executive role leading a number of IPG’s agencies. In 2005, Holbrook was recruited for the CEO role at EMAK, a then-publicly traded portfolio of marketing agencies that was going through Chapter 11 restructuring. He engineered the transition to a privately-held company. Before leaving for Post Holdings, Holbrook launched a new agency at EMAK (called Neighbor) that was focused on socially-conscious companies and products. Commenting on Holbrook’s background, Daitz notes his “strong reputation as a creative business builder who has excellent relationship and team-building skills. Jim knows what it means to lead for results, and he is a proven executive in the consumer sector. I am excited about where he will take Daymon in the years ahead.” “Daymon is one of the great gems in the world of global retailing,” says Holbrook. “This is a tremendous time to join the company and I am very excited about how we can work together to serve our customers and business partners even more effectively in the future. I cannot wait to meet more of my new colleagues and get started on this work.” “One of my greatest concerns as CEO has been to ensure my successor can lead Daymon in ways that fulfill the awesome potential of this company,” says Cooper. “I have spent time with Jim Holbrook during the search process and I am excited about what his arrival means for us. He brings new perspectives and experiences that will drive significant value for our customers, partners and associates.”